


Like Cats and Dogs

by TheColdestGinger



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, Some Fluff, Some angst, but I'm revamping this one, but they're shapeshifters, crossposted on ff.net, shapeshifter AU, spitfire shenanigans
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-03-20
Updated: 2017-11-14
Packaged: 2018-10-08 11:54:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 25,373
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10386087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheColdestGinger/pseuds/TheColdestGinger
Summary: From the moment Wally West had met Artemis he couldn't take his eyes off of her. Maybe it was the way her scent burned his nose, or how she walked with a predatory grace. There was just something about the blonde waitress that set her apart from the rest.





	1. Another Town Another Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> Hey so this is an old fic I posted on FF.net that I'm rewriting and posting on here. So if you've seen it before that's why. Thanks for reading. :)

"Hey! Dude, wanna go on a run?" A voice called out from the other side of the room.

Wally looked up briefly from the bunch of shot glasses he was carefully putting back on the shelf. Dick Grayson leaned against the wooden doorframe of the bar.

"I thought you had a date tonight." The redhead was expecting to have the apartment he and Dick shared to himself for the night when his roommate had talked about the latest lady in his life.

Dick shrugged. "Lori and I just didn't hit it off."

Wally tried his best to bite back a laugh. Dick had very low standards when it came to women. Whatever it was, it must have been something significant to drive Happy Harbor's Casanova away. He had finished stacking the shot glasses and moved on to the sticky bar top.

"She seemed nice." Wally carried on the conversation as he wiped down the granite with some Windex.

Dick shook his head and groaned. "She was nice."

Wally raised a brow at this information. "Then what was wrong?"

The young man let out a heavy sigh and walked over to one of the bar stools. Whatever he had to say he wasn't shouting across the room. There was a slight look of disgust on his face that. "You know that taxidermy place on the far side of town?"

Wally nodded. That place always gave him the creeps. He thought it took away an animal's dignity to be displayed in such a way.

Dick frowned, "It's her mom's place. Lori's mother is a taxidermist."

"Really!" Wally howled with laughter, much to his best friend's indignance. He was going to have to remember to tell Roy about that when he got back into town. It would definitely make his friend's day, and with the way things had been going with Roy lately something to laugh about would be a good for him.

"So do you want to go on a run or not? It's a nice night and fresh deer sounds really good right now." Dick knew Wally never passed up an opportunity to hunt.

The redhead put away the cleaning supplies and grabbed the keys. "Sure, but there's something I gotta ask." Wally grinned.

"What?"

It was hard for him not to laugh. "You want a wall mount or a full body mount? I bet if you patch things up with that girl you could get a discount."

"Well maybe I can get a two for one deal and get you on a plaque too." Dick replied smoothly, but there was no mistake for the acid in his tone. It wasn't often that a girl took him by surprise like that. Sure his standards might have been low, at least in Wally's humble opinion, but there was a bottom line and he didn't enjoy hearing about the various methods of preserving a dead animal. He remembered it took everything he had when Lori talked about the crown jewel of her mother's collection; a grey wolf.

Wally flipped off the lights and locked the door. "My car or yours?"

"Yours. I walked here." Dick supplied and they headed towards an old red Jeep parked in the rear of the lot. They both got into the vehicle and Wally pulled out onto the main road.

"Where to?"

"State Park. It's the closest."

Wally could tell how antsy Dick was. He felt it too. With all of the extra shifts Ollie had been asking him to pull while they looked to replace Roy really cut into his free time. Which meant he had fewer opportunities to shift.The extra cash was a little nice sometimes, but he missed being able to go run around the woods every other night. 

They were the only car out on the road. Humans usually didn't go hiking at the brisk hour of three in the morning. However, Wally wasn't human, at least not completely. And what they had planned was a little more than just some hiking. Wally could barely contain the excitement that rushed through his body as they pulled into the deserted parking lot. The sound of tires grinding against the gravel was like music to his ears. It wasn't until then that he realized that it had been more than a week since he had last shifted. He guessed it had been about the same length of time for Dick from the look on his best pal's face.

"Let's go." Wally smiled. He had stashed his keys in a special spot under his car and made sure to lock the Jeep. A few months before he had not been so careful and his precious Wrangler was three states over before he realized it had been stolen.

Dick nodded. "I want to try the north trail. The south is getting a little boring."

"For you maybe." The redhead grumbled. The north trail had dense foliage while the southern had more clearings and was easier to run through. He really wanted to let loose and get a good sprint in, but Dick wanted a good hunt so Wally let his friend have this one.

They both knew the forest like the back of their hands. It was the closest neck of woods to town that offered complete cover. It was an easy spot to go to for a midnight meal.

"How was work?" Dick asked quietly, stirring the silence as they walked down the trail.

Wally shrugged. "It wasn't that bad. Mostly regulars. No surprises." Like most of the staff at Ollie's bar, his job as a bartender had two purposes. He was the one who kept an eye out for other shifters passing through. Bruce—the alpha—was very protective over their territory. Every so often a lone wolf would pop up. They usually watched the shifter. Sometimes they would confront them and ask them to leave if they were deemed a threat, but nothing usually got out of hand. Once they encountered a bear shifter. That occasion didn't end on a happy note, but the pack was safe and that was all that mattered.

Dick nodded. "That's always good." Outside shifters weren't always welcome in their territory. They had a claim on most of Rhode Island and some of Connecticut as well. It was not the most favorable land terrain wise, but it was close to all of the major cities in New England. Some of the shadier clans wanted to get their paws on the area for 'business' reasons.

They walked for about fifteen minutes on the trail until they came to their usual spot. Wally headed off into the bushes and began undressing. He carefully folded his dark jacket around his jeans and tucked them under a bush. The ground felt cool against his skin as he crouched down and started to shift. Ice shot down his spine and his bones felt like they were on fire as they rearranged into a new form.

Relief washed over him as he stood on all fours. The animal inside was finally free. His surroundings suddenly came to life as his senses awakened. After a quick stretch to work out the stiffness in his muscles, Wally trotted over to a small little clearing a little ways off of the trail and waited for Dick.

The bushes were silent as a large coal colored wolf with blue eyes slipped out into the clearing. Dick wagged his tail and nodded his head towards the other side of the meadow. Wally joined him and they headed off to sniff out the game trails. The darker wolf took the lead. Dick had a better nose and would find the deer faster. Wally, on the other hand, had speed that was second only to his uncle's. He was built for the long chase. They had a system when they hunted. Dick would find the deer and scare it and Wally would come around and chase after it until they had a meal.

* * *

 

Artemis gave a sigh of relief when the exit sign for Happy Harbor came into sight. Her clunky old Ford had been sputtering like an indignant madman for the past hundred miles. She feared her truck would break down before she reached her destination. The green 150 had faithfully carried her across the country these past few weeks, but without repair it would soon fail her. Fifteen miles stood between Artemis and her destination. She prayed the truck would stay together in the final stretch. She would hate to be abandoned on the stretch of road at three in the morning. Not that she couldn't handle herself or anything, but it would be quite inconvenient and she wasn't sure she had enough money to cover tow if she wanted to get her truck fixed. 

Her worries were put to rest as her breaks squealed to a stop in front the first cheap motel she could find. She locked up her vehicle and slung a large duffel over her shoulder. Artemis stopped for a moment and observed her surroundings. The motel was located on the edge of town so there wasn't much to see other than dense mass of trees, but she liked what she could see. Happy Harbor was small enough to be out of the way, but large enough that she wouldn't stand out like a sore thumb. _Perfect_. The last thing she wanted was to be noticed.

The salty air reminded her of Anacortes, the last place she briefly called home. She never stayed in one spot for long. Small towns were easier for her to blend into, as many were far out of the reach of her father's enterprise, but every so often she switched it up and stayed in a big city for a month or two. Artemis was from the city originally, but with her time on the run she learned that the danger in the city blended in just as well as she could.

After talking to the grumpy attendant she took her key and headed up the rusty staircase to her room for the night. Her boots were unusually silent against the old metal stairs. Artemis preferred to be silent when she moved. Sound brought attention. She hated attention.

Artemis looked around the dark, musky room. Her eyes adjusted quickly to the darkness so she didn't bother with the light. She sniffed a few times before setting her things down on the lumpy bed in the middle of the room. It was instinctual now after all the times she had been ambushed by the various people her father sent after her. Artemis had learned the hard way that she could never be too careful.

The motel room had one exit and one window. Artemis wasn't sure if it was a blessing or a curse. The limited entrances made it hard to break in unnoticed, but if they were broken into she was cornered. Before heading off to bed she loosened the screws on the doorknob so it made a jiggling noise at the slightest disturbance. Artemis was still tense as she collapsed on the bed, but the mattress—as lumpy it was— felt nice. She had spent the last week on the road. Only stopping for gas, food and the occasional hour of sleep.

This time she hoped she could stay a little longer. Artemis spent the last three years on the run and she was tired. Maybe it was something inside of her or the sleep depravation, but she could feel that this time things would be different.

* * *

 

Wally scratched at his neck with his back foot while he watched Dick finish off the rest of the deer. The large black wolf dragged the carcass out of sight when he was done. It was a good-sized deer that filled both shifters' stomachs. Wally took point on the way back to the trail. He detoured by the little stream so they could wash the blood off. The redhead had a strict no blood policy when it came to his Jeep.

The duo galloped through the dense foliage with ease. They both had work the next day. Wally didn't have to go in until the afternoon, but Arthur, the harbormaster, expected Dick to be there by ten. He was in charge of typing all of the old files up on the newer digital system. At least he had Kal to keep him company.

When they reached the place where they had stashed their clothes they paid more attention to their surroundings. It was unlikely that a human would run across them, but neither wanted to take that chance.

Once he was satisfied that there were no humans in the area, Dick loped over to the rotted tree trunk and snatched his clothes out with his mouth. It took him a few minutes to shift back into human form and put his clothes on. When he was done he expected to see Wally there too, but found his friend still in his wolf form sniffing the air.

"What is it?" Dick asked. Wally was acting strange, or at least stranger than usual. The reddish-brown wolf briefly glanced at his friend, but continued to sniff the air. Something had caught his attention. Dick inhaled the fresh night air, but he could not pick out any scents that were out of the ordinary.

Finally, after a little more sniffing, Wally headed back towards his clothes and Dick. A few minutes later the redhead emerged from the bushes.

"Something is off." The redhead answered. There was something in the air that was different, but he couldn't figure out was it was or if it was good or bad. What Wally did know was that something was coming. He could feel it in his bones.

 


	2. Welcome To Happy Harbor

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the second chapter. Expect to see more chapters in the coming days. If you have seen this before I'm rewriting the story I posted on ff a few years ago and posting it here. Thanks for reading.

Artemis couldn't decide if she liked Happy Harbor. It was a nice little fishing town that was out of sight and out of the way. It was as close as she dared to near her father's home turf. For the last two years Gotham had been strictly off limits, and would stay so until Lawrence rested six feet below the ground. He had made it very clear that she was no longer welcome and she had the scars to prove it. 

As far as she could tell, there was nothing physically wrong with Happy Harbor, but she kept getting a weird vibe. Something was off in the town. She couldn't put her finger on it, but there was something about the town that just set her inner beast on edge. Though she didn't have much of a choice to stay or go at this point. Artemis was running out of cash and her ride was in desperate need of repair. If she was going to leave Rhode Island anytime soon she needed to happen upon a job or a serious amount of cash.

While the town had an eerie feeling it was pretty. The boardwalk that ran along the boat harbor housed most of the town's local business and tourist traps, while the streets that surrounded it comprised more so of the local businesses. Artemis spent most of the early afternoon walking through the streets of Happy Harbor in search of a job. It was mid July so most of the business had already filled their summer positions. After being turned down at three restaurants Artemis was sent towards Ollie's, a bar most of the locals hung at.

* * *

 

The bar was not far from the boat harbor, but was far enough from the beach boardwalk that it wasn't bursting at the seams with tourists. The dark green exterior of the wooden building stuck out against the pastel colored buildings that made up the rest of the town. Artemis thought it looked nice enough when she walked in; nothing set off any red flags and that was always good. The emerald décor was different, but nothing spectacular. Artemis felt like she could easily see herself working there. 

Kal, the bartender, pointed her in the direction of Ollie's office when she asked about the open position. Artemis thought he was very friendly, but there was something about him that felt odd to her. Something that made her want raise her guard. Her nose wasn't as good in human form, but it was decent enough that she could tell something about Kal smelled different. Though there was nothing about him that gave her reason to worry. When she walked into Ollie's office and got the same scent off of him she chalked it up to paranoia.

"So I see you've moved around a lot the past few years." Oliver Queen raised an eyebrow as he glanced over her resume. 

Artemis sat back in a creaky metal chair. Most people would probably feel uncomfortable in the situation, but Artemis had been to so many job interviews she'd seen it all. Nothing could faze her anymore.

"Yes," she nodded and took note of his expression. He didn't seem to judge her by that fact. "Is that a problem?" It was a risky move, but it showed she was confident.

Ollie leaned back in his seat. "Yes and no." His tone revealed that he was undecided on the matter. "Miss, I'm looking for a reliable employee. Your history shows you have a lot of experience, but I have a feeling you skip around a lot and that is an issue."

Artemis nodded her head. She was stuck in Happy Harbor at least for the next four to six weeks or whenever the part came in for her truck. "I understand how my past paints me as a flight risk, but I can guarantee you that you will not find a harder working waitress." She hoped he didn't take too much notice of how she skirted around his question. She wasn't going to promise to stick around. 

"Alright." Ollie set her application on the desk. She could tell that his decision was made. "Can you work late nights?

"Yes." 

"Can you work tonight?"

"Yes," she replied and tried to bite back her smile. This had gone far better than she had hoped for. 

Ollie stood up and Artemis follow suit. He extended a large calloused hand and smiled. "Welcome to Ollie's. I'll have Megan show you the ropes and you can start your shift once you get the hang of it."

He handed her an olive green t-shirt with the bar's logo and sent her off to find Megan.

Artemis made it her mission to know the layout of the bar by the end of her shift. The numbered tables were easy to memorize. After Megan was sure she knew what she was doing she left Artemis in charge of the tables on the upper level of the bar. The second story of Ollie's was a lot smaller than the ground level. Half of it was inside and the other was faded green deck that had a decent view of the pier.

The work wasn't hard. Business picked up near the end of the afternoon. She had made friends with Megan, one of the other waitresses, Barbra, and Raquel, one of the chefs in the kitchen. There were a few other people she had run into, but she didn't recall their names. Though they probably would come with time. She felt like she was doing pretty well for her first shift. Ollie had also seemed impressed with her work ethic when he came to talk with her at the end of her shift.

"You seem to know what you're doing." He smiled and handed Artemis her tips for the night. She did well for her fist day on the job. The money, added to her remaining cash, would be enough for a deposit at a cheap apartment.

Artemis grinned. "Thank you, Sir." She pocked her earnings and headed towards the employee hall in the back of the building.

"Wait! Artemis!" Ollie popped his head out of his office. Artemis' long ponytail brushed against the wall of the narrow hallway as she turned around. "You can hang your apron up on the hooks by the door. Use Roy's hook for now, I'll put your name on one tomorrow."

"Okay, thanks." Artemis almost forgot about Ollie's apron rule. Apparently some of the servers had a bad habit of leaving their aprons at home. Some of the other restaurants she had worked in had the same system in place, but none of them had assigned hooks to the workers.

Artemis found the area Ollie was talking about with ease. It was more of a cubby area than just hooks on a wall. There were twenty little spots. Each had a shelf and two hooks. There were little wooden plaques with painted names at the top of each space. Roy's, whoever he was, was the top cubical closest to the door that employees used as an exit. There was about a quarter inch of dust collecting on the shelf. Artemis tried her best to fight off a barrage of sneezes as she brushed the grime off the old wood compartment. Once that was done she folded her apron and set it on one of the rusty metal hooks before making her way to the exit.

Right as she stepped out into the muggy evening a redheaded blur wearing a t-shirt similar to hers rammed into her, causing her to fall to the ground. He obviously was not looking where he was going. She was usually more aware of her surroundings, but it seemed like the man came out of nowhere and caught her off guard. 

" _ Hey _ _!_ " Her voice was as harsh as the glare she sent at the man. To his credit, the man stopped in his tracks and turned to help her up. Though she still was not too pleased with him. 

The redheaded stranger towered above Artemis. He looked to be few inches taller than six foot from her estimate. His look of panic faded into an apologetic expression as he extended out a hand of assistance. "Sorry, I didn't see you there."

Artemis scowled and refused his hand. She didn't need his help. "Watch out next time!" she snapped, purely out of instinct.

Anger, or maybe annoyance, flashed over his freckled features as he stood there and watched her pull herself up off the ground. She scowled at him and helped herself up and brushed the sandy soil off of her faded jeans.

The man mumbled something about being rude and tardiness before rushing in the employee door. Artemis shook her head and started walking back to the Motel. She really hoped she wouldn't have to work with that clumsy idiot. 

* * *

 

Ollie would not be pleased. This was the second time Wally had been late to work that week. He had a good excuse, Dick forgot to mention that he took Wally's clothes to the Laundromat and Wally had to rush over there and get his work shirt, but he knew it wasn't worth the bother. Ollie didn't take excuses.

In his frantic frenzy to get to work he had managed to mow down a girl. Wally did feel bad at first, but her rude actions only added to the list of things that soured his day. He'd never seen her before, but he did not have the time to wonder about her. His bad day was about to get worse. Ollie, who was not even the least bit happy, was waiting for Wally in the employee hallway when he burst through the door. The tall blonde man was occupied with one of the employee cubbies as he waited for her late bartender. Wally noticed it was Roy's space, which was strange. Roy left two months before after a fight with Ollie about a managing position at the bar.

Wally tried to skirt around his employer, but it was only a matter of time that Ollie noticed him. He wasn't hard to miss with his fiery orange hair and height of 6'2". Ollie also had a particularly good sense of smell as well.

"West, what time is it?" Ollie didn't bother looking up from his work. The nails squeaked as he pulled them from the old, painted wood.

Wally cringed. There was no way he was getting a raise anytime soon. "Sorry. It won't happen again."

Ollie's frown finally faded as laughed at that statement. "Don't make promises you can't keep, Pal. Go wash up and get to work."

"Yes sir." The bartender hung his keys and rain jacket on the hook in his assigned spot and headed through the kitchen to the bar. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

 

It took Artemis about thirty minutes to walk back to the motel. She took her time meandering down the side of the dirt path next to the old asphalt road. Artemis used her commute to get accustomed to some of the local scents and scenery. She wanted to know her surroundings well enough that she wouldn't feel like she was cornered and to scope the out well enough for when she needed to shift again. 

The road ran along a stretch of woods that belonged to the local state park. On the other side of the road she could see a few blocks of shops and apartments. Artemis planned to check out the state park the next day to see if it fit her needs. Eventually, human food would not be enough—especially with her budget—and she would have to hunt. She could only keep the beast within her at bay for so long. 

When she arrived at her dingy motel room she noticed a small bruise forming on the left side of her face along her cheekbone. It wasn't too painful or anything, but it was dark enough that she would have to find a way to conceal it when she showed up for work the next day. She didn't want to draw any unnecessary attention to herself. A single shift would probably heal the injury to a point that it didn't stick out like a sore thumb, but Artemis didn't have the time or energy to complete a full shift on an empty stomach. She was out of practice, something that used to be second nature to her became, at most, a monthly ritual completed only to silence her inner beast. It wasn't that she liked keeping a part of herself locked away, but the cost of discovery wasn't worth it. 

Artemis decided she would stop by the drug store the next day and find some make up or something to cover the stupid bruise before she met with the landlord at one of the apartment buildings in town. Next time she ran into that red headed buffoon she would have words for him. She'd been in Happy Harbor for only a day and someone had already made there way on to her black list.

The lukewarm water that leaked out of the shower-head felt nice. It was a muggy evening and she felt like the humidity left a sticky layer of salt on her skin. After a few minutes, Artemis shut off the water and wrung out her hair. The flimsy motel towel she grabbed off of the plastic hook on the wall felt scratchy against her skin, but it did its job. She inspected her bruise in the murky mirror.

The purple bump seemed larger in the fluorescent light. It was going to be a pain in the ass to conceal. Artemis wasn't a stranger to the art of disguising injuries, but it took time to properly hide a bruise, especially one of that size on her face. Her fingers carefully tested the surface of the bump. She noticed how much of her cheekbone she could feel. To repress her other half cost Artemis her muscle. She had not been able to keep up with her nutritional needs while on the run from her father. Eventually, this would cost her a lot more than a little muscle mass, but Artemis hoped she could pull her life together before she reached that point.

* * *

 

Wally couldn't get that blonde girl out of his head. He spent his entire shift trying to think about anyone—anything—but her. However his mind refused to let Blondie go. Hell, he didn't even know the chick's name, though, whoever she was, he didn't like her. Nevertheless, Wally was curious. Ollie didn't usually hire humans for his wait staff, especially ones from out of town. The shot glasses quickly piled on the shelves as he contemplated the mystery of the blonde stranger. Wally was too occupied with his thoughts to notice Dick sitting at the bar.

"Hey, Space Cadet! What does it take for a guy to get drink around here?" There was amusement in Dick's voice, but it was clear that he was exhausted.

Wally spun around and frowned. He had yet to get over the laundry fiasco, but a weak glare was enough to deliver the message. "What do you want?"

"A drink would be nice." Dick smirked.

The bartender didn't even have to ask what kind of drink his friend wanted. Dick usually got the same thing. Wally swiped a glass off the shelf and pulled out a bottle of tequila. He poured the shot and slid it over to Dick.

"Leave the bottle."

Wally raised a brow, but left the skinny glass bottle on the bar. "Rough day?"

Dick emptied the glass and nodded. "Bruce decided to drop in for dinner."

"I thought he was taking care of some business in Gotham."

"So did I." Dick filled the glass again. "But he called me this afternoon and asked me to meet him at Marvin's."

Bruce was the alpha of their pack, but he usually stayed at his house in Gotham or on pack lands in Connecticut. He stopped by every once in a while, but almost never without warning.

"Anything going on?" Wally knew an unexpected visit from Bruce meant bad news.

"He didn't tell me, but something's up. He told me too keep my eyes open, which is never good." Dick frowned. It was no secret that Bruce was grooming Dick to be the next alpha. He and his adopted son had a complex relationship. Bruce was very demanding of Dick, and while Dick had always loved being a leader, he didn't love the idea of being in charge of an entire pack. This caused friction between the two.

"Yeah that's not good at all," Wally watched as his friend poured more tequila. "You have any idea of what it could be?"

Dick shook his head. "Nothing comes to mind." He downed a final shot of tequila. The liquid burned as it ran down his throat, but Dick welcomed the sensation. He didn't worry too much about the effect the alcohol would have on him. Any side affect from the shots would be gone by the time he finished his conversation with Wally.

"I see." The bartender grabbed the tall bottle of tequila and ducked under the bar to set it in its place.

Dick handed Wally his glass. "So, what's going on with you? You were pretty out of it earlier."

Wally frowned. Blondie again. "Ollie finally filled Roy's spot."

"You say it like it's a bad thing." Dick did his best to hide his amusement. "Who got the position?"

"I don't know."

"Then how do you know he filled the spot?" Dick asked in confusion.

"No, I know who filled the spot. I just don't know her name." Wally made a mental note to find out more about the chick that filled Roy's spot.

"She's not from Happy Harbor?"

Wally shook his head. "Nope, I've never seen anyone like her before."

"Weird. Ollie always hires locals," Dick was interested. Ollie didn't normally hire people that he didn't know. 

"I know!" The redhead scowled. "She's gonna be nothing but trouble."

"Why?" Dick bit back a laugh. He could tell that Wally must have had a bad run-in with the mystery woman or something of the sort. Usually Wally waited to pass judgment until after he at least learned someone's name.

"I can just tell," Wally claimed. The memory flashed through his mind once more. His nose tingled with the memory of Blondie's spicy scent. She was a disaster waiting to happen. However, while he wouldn't admit it a for the the time being, he was intrigued. He'd only spent about a total of ten—maybe fifteen—seconds with the woman and he couldn't get her out of his mind.

Wally finished cleaning up the bar. Dick had excused himself for a phone call. Bruce probably wanted him to patrol the area or something. Wally didn't know, he didn't trouble himself with keeping track of all of the alpha's son's duties. He knew his place in the pack and had accepted it. Dick—on the other hand—was a natural-born leader, but he wanted no part in being the pack alpha.

The air was so thick outside Wally felt like he was inhaling water. Fresh puddles scattered throughout the empty parking lot were all that was left of the evening shower. Wally pulled a single silver key out of his pocket and locked the back door. Ollie was the kind of person who liked his beauty sleep so he entrusted a few employees with a key. Wally was a regular on the night shift. He preferred it over the lunchtime buzz.

Wally headed back to his apartment. He would've liked to stop by the state park for a little run, but Dick was occupied with whatever bullshit Bruce was making him do and Wally didn't feel like going out solo. It wasn't as fun going out alone, especially after it rained. A good night's rest was far more appealing than an excursion through the woods. He didn't even bother taking a shower. Wally could feel his bed calling to him. He shucked off his shirt and pants before falling into his mattress. Sleep overcame Wally quickly as the exhaustion of the day washed over him. It was rare that he made it to bed before three. His mind was like a wheel constantly spinning, thinking, and wondering. It was hard to silence the machine sometimes. When it went out without a fight he didn't take the opportunity for granted.

Little did he know, the next few days would hold more excitement than the small town bartender could have ever imagined.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Kudos and Comments are more than welcome and very much appreciated. If you want, you can find me on Tumblr as TheColdestGinger. I'm having a lot of fun re-writing and finishing this story. I can't wait to see what you guys think of what happens next! :)


	3. Down the Rabbit Hole

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading. I'm still working on rewriting the chapters that were posted on ff.

Artemis surveyed the small single bedroom apartment. It was sufficient for her needs. The space was bare, but furnished. It was on the third floor and overlooked the cargo docks. Besides the slight odor of fish, she had no complaints about the unit. Its location and layout would enable a quick escape if she were ever ambushed and still provided her with the security and privacy she needed.

Mr. Smith, the landlord, was nice enough. He was a tall, bald man dressed in plain work cloths. Artemis could sense he had a no nonsense way of going about things. He reminded her of a robot.

It didn't take long to settle into her new apartment. Artemis tossed her duffel in the single bedroom and made her way to the kitchen. The cupboards housed a few of the essentials. In the drawers there were miscellaneous forks, spoons and knives. Nothing in the small kitchen seemed to match, but it would do for the few months she planned to spend in Happy Harbor.

Artemis had time to go buy food and other supplies to fill the fridge before work. The kitchen lacked the bare essentials when it came to food. All she could find was an unopened bag of flour and a can of peas.

* * *

 

The sun felt good against her skin as she walked to Ollie's after dropping off her groceries. Artemis was wearing her work shirt and a faded pair of jean shorts. The humid air did horrible things to her unruly mane of hair so today she pulled it back into a neat braid that ran down her back. A fresh layer of concealer covered the unsightly shiner below her left eye. Her worn out converse scraped softly against the sandy sidewalk. It seemed that anything in Happy Harbor south of the state park was coated in a thin layer of sand. Artemis was not particularly fond of sand, but it was only a small nuisance she could put up with while she lived in Rhode Island.

Ollie's was very busy for a Wednesday. The Hump Day Hush Puppy Special seemed to draw a crowd. Artemis could tell it was going to be a hectic shift when she walked through the back door. Megan and two of the other servers were already in the staff hallway getting ready to go out and take orders.

"Artemis!" Megan greeted her cheerfully. The auburn haired girl was very enthusiastic. "How's your day going?"

"It's going well, Megan!" She replied with a façade of excitement. She wasn't really sure if she wanted to make friends or not. She was not big on loose ends. Artemis couldn't afford to have something that might hold her back. She had no room for error anymore.

"Would you like to come the boardwalk with us Friday?"

This took Artemis by surprise. She'd only known the girl for a day and she was already being invited to things. "Ummm." She didn't know how to respond. "Sure?"

"Yay! I can't wait to see you there! Bring a swimsuit!" Megan jumped up and down in excitement.

The other waitress seemed oblivious to Megan's enthusiastic babbling. In no time the excited auburn haired girl's mouth was moving a million miles a minute as she covered the daily specials and the happy hour routine.

* * *

 

Artemis smiled and nodded. Nothing seemed too complicated, the specials weren't hard to memorize. She set her things in the small cubby that now bore her name and snatched out the dark brown apron. Her fingers worked quickly to secure the article with a bow before she sauntered down the hall towards the tables. Artemis eyed an empty table and set off with menus in hand.

Later that evening Ollie pulled her into his office when she was in between tables. Artemis had noticed that he'd been watching her for most of her shift. She still felt like he was assessing her ability as a waitress. She could sense his suspicion.

"How's your afternoon going, Artemis?" Ollie asked casually from the other side of his desk. There was something strange about the way he looked at her.

Artemis sat on the edge of the cold metal chair and sniffed the air. The office smelled like the rest of the bar, but there was a faint hint of an earthy scent. Some one else had been in the office recently.

"Alright." Her voice was neutral as she tested the waters. Artemis had no idea why Ollie needed to talk with her.

He nodded, appearing unsatisfied with her answer. "Are things okay?" Now he seemed concerned.

"Everything's fine." She assured him. Artemis was not sure what Ollie was getting at.

Her boss frowned. "Artemis, It's my job to make sure my employees are safe in their work environment. If anything is bothering you please let me know."

Artemis no longer made an effort to conceal her bewilderment. "Mr. Queen, I can assure you that everything is alright."

The large blonde man sighed and laced his fingers together on top of the desk. His frustration was clear. "Then why do you have a black eye?"

Artemis said nothing at first. Her fingers lightly traced across the forgotten bruise. She had been sure that it was covered. "How could you tell?"

"I have good eyesight." Ollie replied. "Now who did that to you?"

"No one." She lied. Artemis may have had a grudge against the nameless redhead that did this to her, however, she had enough sense to not reveal the cause of her shiner. It was an accident, but she didn't want whomever it was to get on the bad side of Ollie. Her bad side was enough for any man to face.

"Artemis, you don't have to cover anyone. Just let me know and I'll take care of it." The blonde man's words were patient and well intended.

She shook her head and forced out a laugh to sell her lie. "No, Ollie, you don't understand. No one did this to me. I got this when a jar fell off of one of the shelves and hit me in the face at my apartment." Artemis tried to play it off as if it were nothing.

Ollie looked slightly unconvinced, but he didn't push the issue. "Alright. If you need someone to walk you to your car or apartment, any of the guys on staff would be glad to do so."

Artemis smiled and thanked him for his concern before heading back out to work. She highly doubted that a human escort would provide protection. Her claws did good enough against most threats that lurked in the night.

When Artemis first met Ollie she thought he was very similar to her father. Lawrence shared the same build with Mr. Queen, but soon enough she realized Ollie was not like her father at all. Unlike Lawrence, Ollie was a kind man with a warm heart under a hard sarcastic exterior. It almost made her smile to think that she ever saw a resemblance between the two.

* * *

Wally showed up to work twenty minutes early to make up for the previous day's mistake. He had spent most of his day fishing with his uncle.

For most of his life Barry Allen has been much more than just a relative. Wally's parents were human. His father carried the shifter gene, but never expressed the trait. His mother had no clue that shifters existed until he first started changing. Mary didn't necessarily take the news well at first, but over time his mother grew accustomed to it. It was a little awkward at first, but his parents grew used to his nighttime activities. Iris, his father's sister, and her husband were both shifters.

It was Barry's day off. Since Wally's parents moved to Central City, Barry and Wally tried to do some day activity when they both had the chance. Today they borrowed Arthur's boat and went fishing. Wally enjoyed spending time with his family. It was a nice break from his hectic schedule.

Wally's shift started after happy hour. He had a few minutes to spare before he was to report to the bar. On his way in he noticed the new name where Roy's used to . Who named their kid Artemis?

* * *

 

After her shift Artemis found her self at the bar of all places. She didn't feel like going home. There was nothing to do at the tiny apartment. In the tiny closet Ollie called a break room she had found an old copy of Alice In Wonderland. She'd read it before. It was her sister's favorite book. When Jade was young she always claimed that one day she would become the Cheshire Cat. Artemis couldn't help but smile at the irony. As a kid she had put her whole faith in that book. She believed that there would be a rabbit that would lead her down a hole. The truth that life was far from wonderland was bitter reality she faced in her childhood. Artemis still enjoyed reading through the story. It was one of the few pleasant memories she had from her childhood.

The book was a little under 200 pages. It wouldn't take her long to read. Artemis hung her apron on its hook and headed towards the bar. Happy hour was almost over, but all of the stools except one were occupied. The remaining seat was tucked away in the corner where the bar met the wall. Artemis curled up on the stool and dived into the story.

The soft clatter of a plate stirred the young woman from her book. Artemis looked up and saw Kal standing over her. She immediately sat up and set the story to the side. Her eyes fell upon the plate of fried fish and french-fries.

"It's nice seeing you again, Artemis." He smiled and handed her a set of silverware. The bartender's light blue eyes stood out against his dark face. He was tall and muscular. Definitely an athlete.

Artemis politely took the cutlery from the bartender and set them next to the steaming dish. "You too Kal," She smiled. "Thank you for the meal, but you didn't need to."

"It was not from me. Mr. Queen says this is on the house. He insists."

The blonde debated whether or not she should take the dish. Half of her hated handouts, but the other half knew she should not pass up a meal. The fish did look good and with the upcoming full moon she would need all the protein she could get her hands on.

"Alright, I don't want to be rude." Artemis unwrapped the silverware and pulled the plate in closer. She discreetly sniffed the plate out of habit. She didn't trust Ollie yet.

"Would you like anything to drink?" Kal asked politely.

She scanned over the variety of choices that the bar offered and decided on a simple beer. "I'll have something that's local from the tap."

He smiled and grabbed a clean glass. "Do you have any preference? We have a variety of local beers."

Artemis flashed him a grin. "Surprise me."

The fish was good. The flaky crust and juicy meat melted in her mouth at the first bite. Artemis made an effort to eat the fillet slowly. She was on her third beer when she finished her plate. Kal had a good taste in ale.

They shared a conversation for a little while. It was mostly small talk. Kal was a man of few words, but he was thoughtful. She learned he was from Atlanta. She told him she was from all over. A half-truth was better than a whole truth in her book. He didn't ask questions. She hated questions, especially the personal kind. If Artemis stuck around she could see herself being friends with the bartender. Eventually, Kal had to get back to taking orders and Artemis returned to her book.

* * *

 

Wally hung around the kitchen while he waited for Kal to finish his shift. Raquel always set aside a pile of reject hush puppies for him. Some would say she did this out of kindness, but the ones who knew Wally knew that the chef did it to preserve any of the good batches.

"Hey dude." He greeted Kal as he slipped behind the bar. "Any bogies?" It was always good to know if he had to keep an eye on a customer. Kal was a keen observer and had one of the best noses Wally had ever seen.

The blonde man shook his head. "No, my friend. I think you are in the clear tonight."

Wally glanced over at the customers sitting at the bar. Most of them were regulars. A few tourists sat at one end, standing out like sore thumbs with their Hawaiian shirts. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Customers usually came in waves on the weekdays. Wally preferred this to the constant stream of orders he would get on the weekend shifts.

It wasn't a particularly busy night. After happy hour some of the patrons took their leave and a few more regulars took their place. The boats were returning and that meant the fishermen would soon make an appearance. Wally really didn't like them. It wasn't their personalities that caused his disinclination; rather it was the fishy odor they brought with them. His sense of smell was superior to that any normal person would possess, even in human form. Of course, most of the men were nice enough. He didn't have to throw them out often. But their scent made the option temping whenever they started to cause a ruckus.

After the wave of customers subsided Wally took a minute to look around. His eyes casually scanned the customers. He wasn't searching for anything in particular, but soon something caught his interest. He hadn't noticed the customer sitting in the corner. Usually that was where Dick sat when Wally closed up shop. All he could see was a mass of blonde hair buried behind a book. There were three empty glasses and a bowl of peanuts sitting on the bar top in front of her. Curious, he approached the woman not knowing he was about to bite off more than he could chew.

* * *

 

"Would you like another drink?" A familiar voice interrupted the story. Artemis lowered the book and looked up at the new bartender. Immediately her eyes narrowed. It was the guy that ran her over the other day.

Wally was taken aback as her scent hit him. It felt like fire as it tickled his nostrils. There was no way in hell that was normal.

Artemis frowned. Recognition sparked in his eyes. "You!" She hissed.

"You?!" The redheaded bartender replied. She was the last person he'd expect to run into…again.

"They let you bartend? I thought you had to be coordinated to do that." Artemis frowned. Usually she wasn't the one that started the verbal assaults, but the guy had given her a black eye, she was allowed to give him a hard time.

The bartender scowled and crossed his arms. The freckles on his face danced as his forehead scrunched up in disgust. "I can't believe Ollie hired you."

Artemis set her book to the side and a sly grin formed at the corners of her mouth. "The man knows a good employee when he sees one. What can I say?"

The redhead raised and eyebrow. "The man doesn't hire strangers. How the hell did you get the job?" That statement was more of a question than a jab, but a little multi-tasking never hurt anyone.

She shrugged and drained the rest of her glass. "I'm a hard worker."

He frowned and stared at her for a moment, giving Artemis an opportunity to get a better look at him for herself. Like most of the employees at Ollie's, he was at least six inches tall her than her—which was a lot considering she was 5'8". He had the same athletic build as Kal. His hair was as red as an October sunset and complemented with thousands of tiny freckles that danced across his cheekbones. His eyes were something else. At a glance it was easy to tell they were green, but with a closer look she could see the splashes of gold that streaked across his emerald irises.

Artemis maintained a stoic expression as the bartender studied her. She didn't understand why he was looking at her the way he was. He wasn't drooling over her, but he was looking for something. She sniffed the air. His scent's undertones were similar to Kal's, but his aroma stood out against the rest. There was something about it that she couldn't find words to describe. It sent chills down her spine.

Wally couldn't help himself as he got a real chance to take in the strange woman's features. She was sitting, but he could tell she was tall by from her long arms. Her golden hair was pulled back into a braid. On the left side of her face there was a slight discoloration that blossomed on her cheekbone. He felt a small pang of guilt. He probably was the one responsible for the shiner. Her eyes were an impossible steel blue color. He could see the wildfire that brewed behind her stormy gaze. She was the kind of girl that could not be tamed. He could feel it.

The situation was growing awkward. They couldn't go on like this forever. Someone had to break the tension. "Umm, I'd take that beer now."

He immediately snapped out of it. Any harsh words they had exchanged before had been shoved to the side and he responded like he would for any customer. "Of course. What kind?"

Crap. She had never asked Kal what kind of beer he'd given her. "I'm not sure. I asked the last guy to surprise me and he gave me this."

Wally raised an eyebrow. Knowing Kal he'd bet his weeks pay that he gave the girl the Full Moon Ale. It was a local brew that his friend preferred. Although, it was rare that an outsider enjoyed the beer. A single whiff confirmed his speculations, but it wasn't like he could tell Blondie that. "Alright. I'll see what I can do."

Artemis glanced at the clock on her phone while she waited for her beer. It was only nine, though it seemed she had been sitting there for much longer. She stood up to stretch. Her limbs felt anxious and tight. Even if the full moon was two weeks away, she needed to shift. She had ignored the last moon. It was only a matter of time before she couldn't contain her wild side. Artemis hadn't expected to feel the need that soon, but after that intense stare down with the clumsy bartender she could feel her inner beast stir.

Artemis planned to stay for one more drink before heading out to the state park. She enjoyed the atmosphere of the bar. It was warm and welcoming. The whole place was green, not that she minded. Green was her favorite color.

"Here ya go, Miss." The bartender had returned with another glass of beer. Sometimes he enjoyed her metabolism. It meant alcohol had only brief and minor effects on her body.

Artemis took a sip and gave him a small smile. "Thanks."

The bartender leaned back against the counter behind the bar. A casual grin crossed his expression. "So, you have a name?" He already knew it, but he didn't want to be creepy.

She raised both of her eyebrows and smirked. "I might. You got one?"

"I sure do," he nodded. "But I asked first so give it up, Blondie."

She chuckled and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear. "Alright." She reached out to shake his hand. "My name's Artemis."

It was an alien gesture for the shifter, but for some reason it felt right.

The bartender's grip was firm and warm as he took her hand. "Wally West."

Wally's nose burned as he got closer to the blonde. Her scent was intoxicating. He was surprised that she shook his hand. He was almost too distracted by her aroma to notice the blistering sensation on his palm. After she let go he quickly slid his palm out of sight and hoped she would not see the red sore.

Wally's eyes quickly searched for the source of his pain. The answer rested on the fourth finger on her right hand.  _ Silver _ . A shifter's worst nightmare. It was nasty stuff. Usually it just irritated skin on contact, bit in some cases it could cause a burn. Nonetheless, Wally had been lucky that it was just a ring. He had some previous encounters with the wretched metal that left him with a little more trouble than a simple blister. If silver breaks a shifter's skin it can cause all kinds of trouble such as inhibiting change, poisoning, and in some rare cases, death.

The band on her finger was the only piece of jewelry Artemis was wearing. It was a unique ring. It looked like a silver arrow was wrapped around her finger. The metal was old and tarnished, but it gave the piece an eerie feeling. Wally eyed the silver cautiously. He'd never been burned by brief contact before.

He was about to say something to the blonde when someone called. It was an awkward end to their conversation, but Wally couldn't do much about it.

By the time he was finished with all of his new orders Artemis had finished her final beer. She stood up to stretch and gathered her things. She was a lot taller than he had originally estimated. "How much do I owe you?" Her husky voice sent shivers down his spine.

"Hold on. Lemme see." Wally fumbled to find her tab. He was surprised to see how many beers she had. Maybe it was just the kind of person she was, but she sure seemed sober.

She looked impatient as she held her wallet and waited for him to charge her. Wally caught sight of her bruise again. He felt guilty for crashing into her the day before. To make it up to her he crumpled the little piece of paper. "Y'know. It's just going to be on the house tonight."

Artemis didn't seem pleased. He could tell she was the kind of girl that hated handouts. "Why?"

"Call it an apology," he grinned sheepishly. "I gave you that shiner the other night, didn't I?"

Her fingers lightly brushed the sore spot under her left eye. She didn't confirm his assumption, but it was implied. "Thanks." Artemis fished a few dollar bills from her wallet and shoved them into his tip jar. She pulled her bag onto her shoulder and headed for the employee hallway. Before she disappeared she stopped and turned towards the bar. "See ya around Wally."

"Goodnight, Artemis." Usually Wally was a little better with words, but for some reason he struggled to form a coherent sentence in front of the blonde.

* * *

 

The muggy evening air felt sticky against Artemis' walked back to her apartment to grab her truck. There was a state park on the edge of town that would serve her needs for the night. She was working the lunch shift the next morning so her time was limited. She'd have about half an hour to shift and get the restlessness out of her system.

Her bones ached as she fished the old bike Ollie let her borrow out of the bushes. Artemis knew she shouldn't have waited this long. She wasn't supposed to cage her inner beast. Usually, she had a set time once a month that she would find a stretch of woods and shift. Her recent transcontinental journey messed up her schedule. She had been more concerned with escaping than anything else. Though she found it strange that the feeling had come on suddenly. She couldn't figure out what triggered it.

* * *

 

The rest of his night seemed boring with Artemis gone. She was a fresh face, which was rare around Happy Harbor. Usually the only strangers he met were tourists and travelers. Why would she choose to stay though? Happy Harbor was a dead end town—in his opinion.

A ring of the bells at the door announced Dick's arrival. His normally tidy hair was a mess and he was wearing a pair of ratty jeans and a t-shirt instead of his normal clean attire.

"How was your day?" Wally called out from behind the pile of glasses he was placing of the shelves.

Dick sat down with a grunt. "Shitty."

"Bruce." Wally guessed and glanced over his shoulder to see his friend's reaction.

"No," Dick shook his head. "Arthur."

Wally turned around to grab more shot glasses. "Arthur? What did you do?"

Dick groaned and buried his face in his hands. "I fell asleep and he made me clean all of the bird shit off of the lighthouse as punishment."

"Wow. That's harsh." Wally tried to bite back a laugh.

Dick sent him a weak glare before changing the subject. "I take it your day was much better than mine."

"You could say that."

A glimmer of mischief flashed in Dick's eyes. "Spill."

Wally pursed his lips. He didn't know how much he wanted to tell his friend. "Well, I met the new waitress."

"And?" There was more. Dick could read Wally like a book.

"She's nice." He couldn't think of what else to say. For once in his life he was speechless.

Dick frowned. He was not satisfied with that answer. "Where's she from."

The bartender shrugged. "I'm not sure. She didn't have an accent either."

"Tell me you got her name!"

Wally gave Dick an exasperated look. "Of course I got her name! I'm not an idiot."

"Could've fooled me." He chuckled. "So she's not as bad as you thought?"

"I wouldn't say that. But I'll give her a little more credit." Wally nodded and changed the subject. "What are you doing tomorrow?"

Dick frowned. "I have to work and then Bruce wants me to meet him in the afternoon."

"That sucks. At least you won't have to deal with him for long."

The young man shook his head. "He's sticking around this time."

Wally was surprised. Bruce usually didn't stick around long. "Why?"

"He wouldn't tell me, but I have a feeling something is up. He's been talking with Ollie."

He grabbed a bottle of cleaner and a rag from under the bar. "That's weird. I haven't seen anything that's out of the ordinary lately. I haven't seen a stray shifter since June."

"It's probably nothing we should worry about. Bruce is probably being paranoid." Dick dismissed any reason to be concerned.

Wally nodded. He agreed with his friend, but he would keep an eye out anyways. A shifter could never be too careful. "Would you like a drink, Dude?"

Dick shook his head and stood up. "Nah. I gotta get going. I have an early morning tomorrow and I better get to bed."

"Alright. I'll see you tomorrow."

Wally returned his attention to cleaning the bar. An old tattered book caught his eye as he finished cleaning the bar top. It was the copy of Alice in Wonderland that Artemis was reading earlier that night. Wally found her reading choice strange, he didn't peg her as the type of girl that liked fairytales. She seemed too gritty and realistic for that. Artemis was a puzzling individual. Wally couldn't figure her out yet, but he promised himself that he would. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Kudos and Comments are always appreciated. I hope you guys spotted those easter eggs. :) I'm working on coming up with a playlist for this fic so if you're interested in that stay tuned. I'm probably going to post it on my tumblr as well (I'm thecoldestginger there as well) under my writing tag #emily writes something. Thanks or reading! Chapter four should be out this weekend! :)


	4. Evenings on Boardwalks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's taking so long with the uploading. School has been kind of crazy lately. Thanks for reading. Hopefully there will be more soon.

Wally jogged along the shoreline of Martiana Beach. It was a well-traveled route and one of the top tourist destinations in Happy Harbor. He weaved in and out of the few people along the water. Summer was almost over and most of the vacationers had left the small port town. His sweaty t-shirt clung to his back and sand covered his calves. It was an unusually warm day for September.

When he reached the boardwalk his stomach was begging him for nourishment. The pleasant aromas emitted from the food stands only added to his agony. Wally scoped out his options and make his way over to Don n' Hank's Wing Shack. Their wings were hands down the best wings on the boardwalk, and second only to those that Shayera made in Wally's expert opinion. That woman-as scary as she was-really knew how to cook a chicken.

* * *

 

After finishing up a large platter of their special Wally headed over to Karen's Kreamery for some ice cream to finish off his lunch. He had about five hours until he had to be anywhere so he decided he would take his time on the way home. Wally lazily licked his strawberry ice cream as he strolled down the boardwalk, back towards Martiana Beach. The beach separated the boardwalk from the main part of town.

He was half way to the beach when a familiar blonde braid caught his eye. She was sitting in the back corner of the deck in front of the Sandbar, a local coffee and sandwich place. Artemis looked a lot different outside of work. Wally noticed how cautious she was. Every time she took a sip from her drink she would look up and scan her surrounding. Her seating choice was probably on purpose too. The back corner gave her the best protection.

Wally contemplated if he should go over there and say hi, but he didn't want to scare her off. He didn't want to miss this opportunity to observe her. Something was off with that woman, and he was going to figure out what.

He found a bench a little ways away that allowed him a good view of the blonde without completely revealing his position. Wally ate his ice cream and watched her from afar. Usually he could get a good read on humans, but Artemis was an enigma wrapped in a mystery. The only thing he could get out of her the three weeks that he had known her was that she was hiding something.

* * *

Artemis didn't stick around for long. About five minutes later she flagged the waiter for a check and began to gather her things. She stashed her book into a messenger bag and slid the strap on to her shoulder. Artemis stood up and stretched before heading back onto the main boardwalk. She was wearing a pair of cut off shorts, a thin tank top and flip-flops. Underneath the tank top he could see that she was wearing a swimsuit.

She walked over to a green bike locked up in front of the restaurant and untangled the thick chain from the bike's rusty metal frame. It looked like she was riding Ollie's old bike. His was surprised that it even worked. That bike had not been used in the three years he had worked for Ollie. It had been chained up to the back of the bar and left to the elements. It was even more surprising that Dinah hadn't forced Ollie to throw the old thing out.

Artemis stashed the bike lock in her bag and began walking her bike towards Martiana Beach. Wally finished off his cone and headed in the same direction.

He quickly caught up with her on the trail that separated the vacation condos from the beach. Wally kept his distance and did his best to maintain a normal human pace. The wind in his face brought her faint burning scent to his nostrils. The old bike squeaked as Artemis peddled towards town. Her legs pumped up and down effortlessly and her long blonde braid danced behind her. For someone so cautious and paranoid, Wally found it odd that she had not noticed him yet. As she turned the corner he noticed something on her left shoulder. Four lines peeked out from under her tank top. It was an interesting scar. He thought they almost looked like claw marks.

A vibration in his pocket caused him to stop in his tracks. Wally slowed his pace to a stop and watched Artemis disappear around the corner. He pulled his cell phone out his pocket and glared at it with distaste. It was Ollie. As much as he liked his boss, Wally was hoping for an Ollie free day. He swallowed the growl in his throat and answered the phone with a scowl. He had a feeling he wasn't going to like this phone call.

"What do you need, Ollie?"

* * *

 

Artemis stood in front of the mirror in her apartment scowling at her reflection She couldn't decide what to wear to the boardwalk party. Her simple black bikini and cut off shorts did a poor job of covering the unsightly red scars that ran across her back. She wasn't usually too sensitive about the wound. In the past she had made up stories to explain the damage. When she was working as a lifeguard in California she would tell people that it was from a bear attack when she lived Alaska. But this time she didn't want to have to make up a story for Happy Harbor. She was tired of coming up with lies. It was easier to cover up her scar than allow people to see it.

She wasn't sure how to dress for the party. Megan didn't specify what the attire would be. The blonde figured it would be somewhat casual. After going through her sparse collection of clothing once more, Artemis decided on another pair of shorts and a fitted t-shirt. She left her hair loose for once as an extra precaution. It was going to be dark out, but her long blonde locks would add more protection if she were to go swimming.

Her fingers traced the angry red marks on her back once more before she covered them with her t-shirt. That scar had been a parting gift from her father before she went on the run. Artemis had others from him too, but this one was different. It was meant to be the kill strike. Somehow she survived and got away. Three years later it still stung and stood as a permanent reminder that she could never go home. Artemis tried not to think about it often.

* * *

 

The boardwalk in the old small boat harbor was almost unrecognizable. The abandoned strip was decorated with string lights and lanterns. Megan's boyfriend, Conner, and one of the cooks from the kitchen at Ollie's stood in front of a massive grill. The delicious smell of hotdogs and burgers caused her stomach to stir. Some people stood around engaged in conversation while others played volleyball in the shallow water towards the end of the dock.

Artemis grabbed two hot dogs and set off to find Megan. Even though the party lasted all night, Artemis planned to stay for about an hour, two hours tops. 

"Artemis! There you are!" The blonde froze. She knew this moment had to come sooner or later. Don't get her wrong, she really liked Megan, but sometimes she was a little too cheerful.

The blonde woman spun around and put on as smile to greet the enthusiastic brunette with. "Hey, Megan. This place looks great!"

"Oh it's nothing. I'm so glad you could come!" The hostess seemed to ooze excitement. Artemis didn't know how she had the energy to be like this all the time.

"How did you manage to nab the old boardwalk? I thought they were going to tear it down?"

"Oh they are, but not for another month or two. I asked Arthur and he didn't have a problem with it." Megan babbled enthusiastically.

"That's cool. I guess that's one of the perks of living in a small town." Artemis forced a laugh. Small talk was not one of her strengths.

"It's not all it's cracked up to be, but it's pleasant sometimes." Megan shrugged. She seemed almost sad about it, but then she quickly perked back up. "It's nice to see a new face around every once and a while. I'm so glad I got to meet you!"

The blonde chuckled and tried not to sound nervous. "Yeah, too bad it's your last week at the bar." Artemis was actually going to miss the perky waitress. "But you're going to be a great student teacher."

"Hopefully. I've been studying every night, but I still don't think I'm ready." She sighed. "It's like the first day of school all over again."

Artemis shook her head and smiled. "Oh, it won't be that bad. You just gotta watch out for those sneaky little bastards." The blonde didn't have a lot of experience with kids, but if her students were anything like she was in junior high, Megan would have her hands full.

"Yeah." Megan smiled. "I think that was one of the reasons I chose to forget most of middle school. I was new in town and everyone treated me like I was from Mars."

Artemis snorted. Her years in junior high were awkward at best. "Sixth through eighth grade wasn't the high point of my life either."

The two waitresses laughed like old friends. Artemis found herself actually enjoying social interaction outside of work for the first time in years. Throughout her travels friends weren't a priority. Usually she saw them more as a liability than anything else. But this was different. She felt safe around these people.

"Hey, Megan!" Someone, whom Artemis didn't recognize, shouted out. Both women turned to see a tall dark-skinned woman with a pixie cut emerge from the crowd.

Megan lit up instantly. "Oh hi, Karen!"

The newcomer placed an arm around the brunette's shoulder and pulled her into a one armed hug. "This place looks awesome! I don't see what you were worrying about, Megs."

Going out on a limb, Artemis lightly nudged her friend. "See, I told you it was great."

"Guys, really, it's not that good." Megan humbly denied.

"Are you kidding me? You did an amazing job. The city should hire you as their new event planner." Karen exclaimed as she motioned to the detailed decoration.

Megan smiled and shook her head. "But then who's going to teach seventh graders math?"

"You could probably do both and a million other things." Artemis supplied. Megan was always up to something. She couldn't figure out how the woman had time to sleep between work, school and all the volunteering she did.

"Okay, okay. Enough with the flattery." Megan held up her hands in defeat. "Are you both enjoying the party?"

Karen chuckled. "Do you even need to ask?"

Artemis nodded in agreement. "The food is great!" She approved of the protein packed spread.

"Thanks! Speaking of which, I need to go check on Conner. Let me know if you need anything!" Megan's heels clicked against the old wood as she headed over to the barbeque.

Artemis stood there, not knowing what to say. Conversation with strangers was not her strong suit either.

Luckily for her, Karen had no such apprehensions. "It's Artemis, right?"

"Yeah. And you are?" The blonde had not caught the woman's name—another thing she needed to work on.

"Karen." The woman stuck out her hand.

Artemis returned the gesture. "It's nice to meet you."

Karen flinched when their hands made contact. Artemis found it strange. Wally, Conner and Kal all had done the same thing.

"So where are you from?" The young woman stuffed her aching hand in her pocket and briefly eyed the silver ring on Artemis' finger. The blonde paid little attention to the action.

Artemis really hated that inevitable question. Vague answers were the best way to go. "All over."

Karen nodded, noting that the past was a touchy subject, but she was curious. "Okay, so why come to Happy Harbor?"

Artemis really didn't have an answer to that. Something within her told her that Happy Harbor was the place to go. She shrugged. "I just needed a change."

"I see." Karen could tell she was heading towards forbidden territory so she decided to change the subject. She liked Artemis, and didn't want to push her.

"Hey Karen! Come play with us!" Mal, one of the servers from the bar, called out from the end of the dock.

"Gimme a minute, sweetie!" Karen shouted back. "Come play with us, Artemis."

Artemis wasn't sure about getting in the water. It was dark enough, but she felt exposed out there. "I dunno, maybe I'll join you later?"

"Please? It'll be fun!" Karen made her best puppy dog face.

From the look in the woman's eyes Artemis could tell that Karen wasn't taking no for an answer. She sighed, "Alright. Just for a little bit."

"Yay!" Karen squealed and led her towards the end of the boardwalk.

The dark-skinned woman stripped down to her swimsuit and dove into the water. Artemis slipped off her cut off shorts and debated whether or not to take off her tank top. She spared a quick glance to the setting sun and decided that human eyes would not be able to detect her scar under her hair in the dim light. She followed Karen's example and slid into the cool salty water.

* * *

In a few short strokes Artemis arrived at the net. There were four other girls waiting for her and Karen. She knew Barbara, Zatanna and Raquel from the bar. Karen introduced her to Cassie, who worked with her at the ice cream parlor.

Artemis was actually excited to play volleyball. She used to play in high school before her father made her quit all of her extra curricular activities so she could focus on training.

Tonight it was boys verses girls. Artemis had learned that these volleyball games were highly competitive and that the boys were currently the reigning champs. She planned to make sure that it would no longer be the case tonight. The setup was impressive. A brand new net stuck out of the water and buoys marked the lines.

She opted to stand in the back when the other girls were claiming their positrons. Artemis felt more comfortable without someone behind her. She practiced passing the ball back and forth with the other girls while the guys tried to round up one more player.

"Alright, let's do this, ladies!" Barbara tossed the ball to the opponents' side and they got into position.

Dinah, Ollie's wife, sat in the old lifeguard chair with a whistle around her neck. According to Cassie, she usually refereed the games. Apparently sometimes things tended to get out of hand, but no one dared to cross Dinah. Artemis had not yet had the opportunity to meet Ollie's wife, but she had see the woman around the bar a few times.

Artemis only knew Mal and Kal on the other side, but she recognized the other two. The dark haired boy with blue eyes usually showed up to talk to Wally right before closing time at the bar. The other guy she had seen patrolling Martiana Beach that morning.

"Aren't we waiting for one more player?" Artemis asked, only counting four on the other side.

Before Karen could answer her question the sound of feet pounding against the boardwalk altered the players to the newcomer.

"Incoming!" Wally shouted as he flung himself into the water.

Artemis held her arms up to shield herself from the spray of water, but her efforts were useless. She scowled and glared at the shirtless redhead high fiving his friends on the other side of the net. She felt like a cat that was forced to take a bath against its will. Not that she hated water or anything. She just hated the unexpected spray of salt water in her face.

"Okay," she growled. "It's on!"

She could feel her competitive spirit ignite and she set her sights on defeating that idiot bartender. Knowing him, she'd never hear the end of it if her team lost. Size was the girls' only disadvantage. Mal and Kal could be classified as small giants and Wally and his friends were all over six feet. Artemis was pretty tall herself, but felt dwarfed compared to the other team.

* * *

After a long fought battle the girls did end up victorious, winning two out of the three games. It took a few minutes for Artemis to adjust to playing in the water, but in the end it all worked out. Her night vision helped a lot too. It was kind of nice. For a little bit it felt like the weight on her shoulders was gone. She enjoyed playing with the girls, but the victory over Wally was even better.

Artemis found herself smiling when she fished herself out of the water. She put her tank top back on and headed over to the food tables. After she piled her plate high with a burger and a few hot dogs she strolled back over to the end of the dock. She did like spending time with her new friends, but she still was a solitary creature and needed a little time alone

* * *

 

She sat underneath the wooden railing and dangled her legs off the dock. The sun had disappeared beneath the horizon and the waxing moon was rising in the cloudless sky. Artemis loved how she could actually see the stars here. It was way too smoggy in Gotham to see more than one or two, but here they spread across the sky in the millions. She could get used to this view.

"Can I sit here?"

Artemis looked up and frowned a little bit. She was somewhat surprised. It was Wally. "What do you want?"

He held up two beers in his hand. "I want to have a conversation with you. Is there anything wrong with that?"

She debated on whether to chase him off or to take the free alcohol. Seeing as she had no clue where he had found the beer and she had no motivation to go get one for herself she decided he could stay for now.

"Alright." She held out her hand and accepted the cold bottle. "What do ya want to talk about?"

He plopped down next to her. "Do you like it here in Happy Harbor?"

Wally was surprised she let him stay. When he approached the blonde he got a strong do not disturb vibe from her.

She nodded. "It's nice and quiet here."

"The view isn't bad either, right?" He chuckled. His eyes lingered on the moon for a brief moment. It was almost instinctual. The entity seemed to call out to his kind, especially this close it its peak.

Artemis cracked a grin. "I guess."

"So what are you doing sitting out here all by yourself?" Wally took a sip from his own beer. "If you didn't notice, the party is over there."

People were dancing on the other side of the dock. Artemis never liked dancing.

Her smile faded away and she wrinkled her nose. "Yeah, I know. I just needed a little break from all of the commotion."

"That's understandable." He found it strange that she was tired of being around people. Isolation usually drove his kind mad. But then again, she was human. "You played a great game tonight. You have a killer serve."

She kept her gaze fixed to something in the distance. "I played when I was in high school. "

There was a slight sadness in her voice, but Wally pretended not to hear it. It was a rare to get a piece of personal info from the blonde and he didn't want to push too much.

"Track was more of my thing back then," he recalled. "Do you play any other sports?"

"A few." She supplied with a grunt and took a bit of her last hot dog. Artemis feigned losing interest. She'd already told him too much about her past for tonight.

Wally could tell she was done talking about the subject. He looked out into the distance and searched for something else to talk about. The cool ocean breeze carried her sharp scent toward him. He wrinkled his nose trying to stop the burning sensation, but his efforts were futile.

They sat there in silence for a few minutes. Artemis watched the boats return to the harbor as she ate her food. She allowed her mind to wander without worrying about watching her back. Even though she would never admit it, she felt relaxed around the idiotic bartender.

Wally spent the time kicking himself. Why couldn't he talk to her? She was just like any other girl. But she wasn't. She was Artemis, the most confusing person he had ever encountered. He needed to say something. The redhead stared at the inky black water and waited for an idea to break the ice—again. Then it hit him.

"Would you like to go for a swim?"

Artemis finished off the last bite of her burger. "Don't I have to wait thirty minutes or something after I eat?"

"Nah, that's just a myth." Wally stood up and pulled his shirt off and draped it over the railing.

Artemis tried not to stare, but it was hard not to notice his well formed torso muscles. It was strange to her. Usually she didn't feel any attraction towards humans, even the hot ones. But for some reason she could feel a slight blush crept up her cheek.

"I don't think I should—" Artemis began her excuse when Megan called out for her.

"Artemis! Come join us!" Megan was excited about something. "There's someone I want you to meet!"

Artemis didn't even bother turning around. She pretended not to hear Megan as she sprinted towards the water. The blonde knew her friend meant well, but she was definitely not in the mood to be set up with some random guy. She didn't even bother with shedding her tank top. She landed next to Wally in a graceful cannon ball.

"Hey!" He frowned and shook the water out of his hair. Artemis found herself laughing as she ducked away from the flying droplets.

"And now we're even." She smiled. The look on his face before she hit the water was priceless. She was pretty sure he thought she was going to land on him.

"Are we now?" Wally replied mischievously and against his better judgment, he splashed her.

Artemis narrowed her eyes and fought back the urge to smile. Oddly enough, she wasn't mad. Instead of smacking him across the head—which is usually what she would have done—she sent a wave of water back towards the idiotic bartender.

Wally dove under the water to avoid her attack. He planned to attack her from behind when he resurfaced.

A tingle ran up Artemis' spine as she scanned the smooth surface of the water. Even though she could not see him she could feel as he approached from behind. A smirk tugged at the corners of her mouth as she waited for her moment to strike. She could feel small ripples lap against her back. He was coming.

When he was moments away from breaking the surface she took a deep breath and dove under. With a strong kick of her legs she glided away. This time she did not repress her instinct as a second lens formed over her eyes. It was nice being able to see underneath the water.

Wally was sure he would get her when he ambushed her from behind, but when he came up for air she was gone. He called upon his other half and summoned his heightened senses. It wasn't something Wally did often, especially in trivial situations such as the one he was in, but there was no way in hell he was going to let Artemis get the best of him.

Artemis embraced warm feeling of pleasure that swelled in her chest when she stalked prey. Icy tremors of excitement raced down her spine as she got into position behind him on his weak side. Her powerful muscles tensed and her body became still. Artemis focused in on her target and smiled. A few bubbles escaped her smirking lips as she tried to contain her excitement. She came out of the water like a rocket and sent a small tidal wave in the clueless bartender's direction.

It was an attack Wally never saw coming, and the beginning of the end for the bartender and his unsuccessful attempts to drench the waitress. The two laughed and bantered as they took turns flinging sea water at each other. Ultimately, after a long fought battle, Wally was forced to surrender and admit defeat at the hands Artemis.

* * *

The moon was high in the sky by the time they pulled themselves back onto the dock. The dancing had slowed and people were beginning to find their way home. Wally walked Artemis to the other side of the dock where she had stashed her towel and shorts.

"I won't go so easy on you next time." Wally teased.

Artemis snorted, much to her own embarrassment. "Please, you'll never stand a chance against me." She smirked. "I'm the best."

He raised a brow and chuckled. "Are you sure?"

"Positive."

He was actually surprised. Artemis, a human, was faster than he was. Sure, he wasn't the fastest swimmer in the pack—that was a tie between Kal, Garth, Arthur and Tula—but he usually had no trouble with humans. Maybe Artemis was a former swimmer or something. She did mention to Karen that she was once a lifeguard earlier that night, or at least that's what he thought he overheard.

When they made it to the other end of the boardwalk Artemis made a face.

"What's wrong?"

She picked up her shorts and frowned. "My towel is missing."

It was a cheap, scratchy motel towel she stole a few weeks ago while on the road. Usually, an absent towel wouldn't bother her much. Losing things was part of her lifestyle. But now she needed that stupid motel towel. She forgot to take off her tank top the second time she ventured into the water and now the midnight breeze was starting to take its toll. The night was warm enough, but the breeze off of the water was chilling.

Artemis debated her next course of action. She could put on her shorts while she was still wet and deal with chafing and irritation, or she could ride her bike home without the shorts and freeze.

Wally quickly recognized her dilemma. "Y'know I have an extra towel in my Jeep if you need one."

Her features brightened. "Actually, it'd be great if I can take you up on that offer."

Artemis loved the water and she also loved being dry, but she hated the part in between.

Wally set off to the parking lot and she fell in step beside him. Her intoxicating scent bit at his nostrils again. He tried not to stare at her, but it was hard not to. She was absolutely stunning. Strange enough, he hadn't noticed this before. Before she was just Artemis, but now she was so much more.

He fought the blush that spread across his cheeks and ran his fingers through the hair on the back of his head. "Did you have fun tonight?"

It was the most fun she had in years. She didn't realize how much she missed hanging out with people her own age outside of work. She tended to isolate herself.

Artemis smiled and shrugged. "It wasn't bad."

Wally raised a brow. "Not bad? Really!?"

"Okay,  _ fine _ ," she laughed and rolled her eyes. "I had a lot of fun."

"Good," he smirked and stopped in front of his scarlet Jeep. His nimble fingers pried the stubborn door handle without much difficulty. "What color towel do you want?"

Color? Artemis raised a brow at that. Not only did he leave his vehicle unlocked—she suspected that this was a habitual behavior—but he had a large enough collection of beach towels in said vehicle that necessitated such a trivial question. She peered around his large frame to see these beach towels for herself. Sure enough, there seemed to be a miniature stockpile of towels in the back of his car.

"It doesn't matter," she shrugged.

"How's this?" Wally tossed her a thick green towel.

Artemis immediately wrapped the material around her body. "Thanks."

It smelled just like him, but at the same time it didn't. The towel held a deep, woodsy scent and maybe a hint of dog. Her gut told her that there was something about this scent that was off. She ignored the red flags and dismissed it as paranoia. Wally was a human. She had no reason to worry.

"No problem," Wally shrugged.

"Can I give this back to you at work this week?" Artemis asked. They both had the closing shift Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

Wally grimaced slightly with the mention of work. Ollie didn't give him the full moon off this month. It wasn't that he couldn't handle staying in human form when his other half was at its peak, it just wasn't the most pleasant experience.

"Don't worry about it. I have plenty of others." He said with a lopsided smile. "Are you heading home?"

"Yeah. It's getting late." Artemis was ready to go to bed. She did enjoy spending time with people, but she still had her limits. She was still a cat at heart and she had a certain intolerance for social interaction. "Thanks for the towel. I'll see you at work."

"Have a nice night."

Wally wasn't sure if he should follow her to her bike or not. He decided it would be best to leave her be. Something about her told him that she didn't want to be followed.

"Goodnight, Wally!" She called over her shoulder but didn't bother to look back. Artemis headed over to a small wooded area on the other side of the parking lot where her bike was locked to a tree. A smile spread across her lips. Tonight had been better than she had ever expected. Happy Harbor wouldn't be so bad after all.

* * *

 

Wally waited until she rode off into the night before he returned to the party. He couldn't shake the blonde from his mind. Artemis was unlike any human he had met before—and that was saying something because he had met some pretty strange humans throughout his years. It wasn't necessarily a bad thing. She was starting to grow on him. Although his gut gave him this  feeling every time he was around her, but he wasn't sure what it  meant.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading. I'd love to hear what you think. If you have any questions, comments or concerns feel free to contact me on here or on tumblr (i'm under the same name on there too) Things are about to pick up in the next chapter with the arrival of the full moon. :)


	5. No Wild Animal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey sorry it took me so long to upload this. I've been busy with school and work. Though now that the semester is over I have more time for fic so expect to see more this summer! :) Thanks for reading!

Artemis groaned as she got out of bed. It was _that_ time of the month again. She should have felt more alive than usual being that it was the night of the full moon, and the height of her strength, but she wanted to shrivel up in a hole and die. Tonight she would have to ignore the needs of her other half again for her own safety. She couldn't risk the threat of exposure or miss work. Ollie had her on a double shift in the evening and she needed the money if she was going to make rent this month. Shifting during the day was a death sentence on its own, so she would have to settle for putting it off again. Artemis knew that this was going to cost her, but right now with her father after her she couldn't afford to indulge herself or the basic needs of her other half. Survival was the only thing that mattered right now.

Today she had allowed herself to sleep in. Artemis needed all the energy she could get if she was going to make it through the day and it was a good way to pass the time. She didn't bother with the light or the shades in her tiny apartment. Her eyes easily adjusted to the darkness as her pupils grew larger than what was strictly human. The transition was faster than normal. She could feel that the moon was calling to her other half. Artemis did her best to silenced her inner yearning and headed towards the shower.

The shower didn't do much to silence her inner beast, but the warm water did feel good on her skin. She wondered if she could keep it together tonight. It had been two months since her last complete shift under the full moon and she could feel the need for change ache deep in her bones. She hadn't pushed her limits this far before, but she had no choice.

Artemis got ready for work. She tried to calm her nerves, this wasn't the first full moon she's had to skip, but her efforts were useless despite what she kept telling herself.

* * *

 

Wally glared at the moon as he drove to work. He hated it. It taunted him. Everyone else got to go enjoy it tonight, but, as punishment for his recent strings of absences, he had to hold down the fort at Ollie's stupid bar. He wasn't used to ignoring the call. Usually an older member of the pack r one of the trusted members of the local paranormal community would watch the bar during the full moon. But Bruce agreed with Ollie's idea, as both of them thought Wally needed a lesson in discipline.

The evening crowd was considerably smaller this evening, like it usually was during a full moon. Wally counted it as a small blessing. Though not enough to reduce his misery. It was going to be one of the longest shifts of his life. He didn't have to look out of the windows to know that the moon was rising. His body kept telling him that it was time to run to the woods, despite his best efforts to forget all instinct. It was like an itch that he couldn't scratch. The urge became more agonizing every minute. It was going to be a long nine hours.

* * *

Artemis was late. Usually he wasn't one to be the pot that called the kettle black, but today was an exception. Given the current circumstance Wally had absolutely no patience for even the slightest inconvenience this evening. He glared at the clock on the wall. The hands weren't moving fast enough for his liking.

She showed about five minutes later. Wally noticed that something was off about her right away. He could feel sour mood from a mile away. She seemed to be even grumpier than he was, which was quite a feat, considering the fact that it was pretty much the worst evening he'd had in recent memory. However, bad mood or not, it was no excuse to be late. He managed to make it to work on time, even with the stupid moon. She, a human with no such problem, should be able to do the same. Wally made a note to mention her tardiness to her when she came to the bar with drink orders.

Usually he wouldn't mention lateness to someone, but today he was feeling spiteful. Though Wally immediately reconsidered his actions as he caught sight of the waitress coming his way. Artemis looked more menacing than usual and he had a feeling his shitty day would get worse if he pissed her off. He couldn't remember the last time he felt so threatened by a human, well a human other than his mother, but he's be lying if he said that the look Artemis gave him as she approached this counter didn't make him shake in his converse a little bit.

"I need two IPA's, a Corona and today's special." Artemis slipped him a damp piece of paper with the orders. She wasted no time with small talk or even a greeting.

"Coming right up," he grabbed four beer glasses and slid them under the tap. Her scent hit him harder than it usually did, unlike the usual tickle his nose felt like it was on fire as she stood next to him. Usually he could almost forget the sensation, but tonight it was almost unbearable. _Damn moon..._

She was quiet as she waited for him to finish with her drink orders. Usually she'd make some sort of small talk as he filled drink orders or at least ask how his day was going.

"You okay, Artemis?" She looked like she was about to pass out or kill someone, Wally couldn't decide.

"I'm fine."

However, it was very clear to him that she wasn't. He voice sounded almost strangled and she looked like she was about to jump out of her own skin.

Though other than giving her a concerned look Wally refrained from digging. He knew that with her current mood none of his efforts would be fruitful and could quite possibly make things even worse. Artemis clearly did not want to be messed with so he didn't push the matter. He set the four beers on her tray and she was off without a word.

He wondered what her deal was this evening. Wally had only known Artemis for three weeks, but he was certain that this little spell she was in was out of character for her. Hopefully for her sake she managed to pull her act together in front of the customers. The last thing they needed was for her to scare all of the customers away.

* * *

 

The shift was easy workload wise, but towards the end of the evening Wally could feel his self-control slipping. His ears were killing him and his other senses were off the charts. He was overjoyed when the last group of customers left. At last, some silence.

Artemis was quick to flip over the closed sign and lock the door as soon as the patrons exited the bar. And almost immediately after she turned and made a beeline to the employee hallway, much to Wally's displeasure. Usually he'd be a little more understanding of her situation, but there was no way he was going to stick around and close up without help. There was no way he was going to let her leave all the work to him this evening. Clearly, for whatever reason, she had to leave early. But if he could keep his other half at bay for the twenty-some minutes it took to clean up, she could wait too.

She already had her apron off and her backpack in hand when he caught up to her in the hallway.

"Where do you think you're going?" He caught her by her shoulder. She bristled under his touch.

"I gotta go." She jerked his hand off his shoulder and spun around to glare at him. In the dim light her eyes almost seemed to glow. Wally found it to be a little more than slightly terrifying, which was odd. He'd never felt threatened by any other human before, but even his other half felt the need to run for the hills in the wake of her anger.

Though while her stern gaze remained strong, Artemis looked like she was about to puke. It seemed like she was barely keeping herself together. Though he didn't know why a human was having more issues this evening than him.

Wally was worried for her. "Are you okay, Artemis? You don't look so good."

Something flashed in her eyes. It may have been a trick of light, but he could have sworn for a second her pupils turned into slits. She gritted her teeth and shook her head. "I'm fine, Wally. I'm sorry.I just need to go _now_."

He felt that he shouldn't pry anymore. Despite his earlier promise to himself that he wouldn't let her off the hook this evening Wally finally ceased his efforts to make her stay. Something was clearly up with Artemis, and she was most definitely hiding something. But now was not the time or place to investigate that mystery.

"Do you need a ride home?" Wally thought he should at least offer. It was the polite thing to do.

Artemis took a deep breath and seemed to compose herself some more. "No, I'm fine. Goodnight."

Before Wally could say anymore else she bolted out the door and into the night. He found the whole situation unsettling. He had so many unanswered questions. He went over the situation in his head. Something wasn't right. There were red flags going off in his head, but he couldn't figure out what was wrong. Artemis was a human. A strange human at that, but a human nonetheless. He was sure of it. Maybe the moon was causing him to see things.

* * *

 

Wally did a half ass job cleaning up the bar. At this point the only thing on his mind besides his strange co-worker was shifting. The morning crew could pick up his slack. He could no longer resist the lunar call. Hopefully he would be able to catch up with his pack.

Artemis bolted as soon as she could. She may have been a seasoned veteran when it came to ignoring the call of the moon, but for some reason this evening she felt like she was about to explode. Every little scent or sound seem to bring her to the edge. She didn't know how she managed put up a good front for the customers. By sheer will power and perhaps maybe some dumb luck she managed to make it through the night, but only by a hair.

Wally stopped her on her way out. He seemed to be concerned about her wellbeing, though she was much more concerned for his. If she didn't get out of there soon Wally was going to have a lot more to worry about than her wellbeing.

She felt bad leaving all the clean-up work to Wally, but she could not deny her other half any longer. Her brief incomplete transformations did not satisfy the beast within her. Despite her best efforts she could no longer put off the moon's call.

Artemis didn't remember much of what she said to him as she sprinted out the door. Artemis was too occupied with containing herself to pay attention to the bartender.

There was no way Artemis could make it out of town before she shifted. Hell, she didn't think she could make it home to her apartment. She pedaled down the wooded trail as fast as the wheels could carry her. Though panic soon set in as she came to the realization that she was going to lose the race against the clock. She was practically bursting at the seams. Fur began to sprout through her skin and her muscles tensed as she began to shift. Hopefully there would be enough foliage for her to hide in.

Artemis skidded to a stop and had enough sense about her to toss her bike into the bushes so it would not be seen. At this point sharp claws had replaced her fingernails and her teeth no longer fit in her human mouth. It hurt to move. Her joints were popping as her bones began to change shape. She dove into the bushes and ventured as far away from the path as her legs would allow. Once she could not proceed any further she ripped her clothes as fast as her changing body would allow before finally allowing the change to happen.

Pain erupted through her body and she collapsed down onto all fours. Artemis watched as her fingers grew into paws. Gold fur sprouted through her skin. Her breathing hitched as her nasal cavity changed shape. It was a feeling she missed. Shifting was the ultimate freedom. It took several minutes for her bones and muscles to rearrange themselves. The process was more painful than it usually was, but as soon as she stood in her other form all she felt was relief.

Containing her other half that evening cost her more energy than she had anticipated. After she had finished shifting she found that she could barely keep her eyes open. A wave of fatigue crashed over her as her consciousness began to fade. Artemis used her remaining strength to haul herself onto a large tree branch. She didn't have enough energy to move, let alone hunt. Before she had any more time to think about it her world went dark and she slipped into a deep slumber.

She regained conscious a few hours later. The sun had just peeked above the horizon and her surroundings were beginning to stir. If she didn't hurry humans would soon be walking through the woods on their morning runs and various commutes. She hadn't thought about it the night before, but it was incredibly stupid of her to choose the park as a place to shift.

Artemis shifted back before the risk of discovery increased. The last thing she needed was for the town to be up in arms because someone spotted a large cat sleeping in a tree. She was not the only kind of shifter out there, and as far as she knew there were no others in the area, but she didn't want to find out. She fished her bike out of the bushes and headed back to her apartment.

Upon arriving home she devoured most of the food in her fridge, which was not much, before collapsing once more on her couch. She kicked herself for waiting so long. Now she was paying the price for her mistake. She couldn't keep pushing her luck like this. Artemis tried to ignore the pain in her stomach as she settled into the couch. It was a familiar hunger that she knew no amount of leftovers or cereal could quench. It was the primal craving that she just couldn't shake, not anymore. She needed to hunt.

* * *

Wally felt like he was still trapped in his own skin even after shifting. After closing up shop at work the night before he made his way to the woods to let off a little steam under the full moon. He didn't have much time to shift, Aunt Iris needed his help with yard work in the morning though he thought it would be enough to tide him over until the next time he went out with the pack for a run.

After working for his Aunt all day Wally headed over to work. He originally was scheduled to work until closing again, Ollie that bastard, but Kal took pity on him and traded shifts so Wally could have an opportunity to run free in the woods that evening. He ended up sticking around and grabbed a burger from the kitchen, courtesy of Conner. Wally found a nice spot in the corner of the building and took a minute to relax with his meal.

It looked like Artemis was towards the end of her shift. And while she seemed to be a little better than the previous night she was still acting weird. Wally couldn't put his finger on it, but there was something definitely wrong with her. Usually she'd come over and at least say hi to him, even if he wasn't working. But today she seemed like she was in her own little world. Wally was still somewhat worried, but he figured that she had it under control. Artemis seemed like the kind of person that could handle her own problems. He wouldn't push the matter.

As soon as Artemis got off he noticed that she wasted no time hanging around. She practically ran out the door. Wally continued to ponder her odd behavior as he gathered his own things, but didn't think much else of it as he pulled his jeep on the road towards the state park. The uneasy feeling he had felt all day had reached the point to where he was no longer comfortable in his own skin. Wally needed a couple of hours in his other form, and perhaps a furry snack, to feel like himself again.

* * *

He was a little disappointed that Dick was out of town. Shifting wasn't the same alone, but Wally was in no position to be picky this evening. He didn't let it bother him too much as he walked down the path to the spot where he always stashed his clothes. After sniffing the air a few times he shed his clothes and crouched down by the rotting tree stump. The change was effortless and swift. Painful at first, but not in traditional sense. It was the type of pain he welcomed. With shifting came a relief that no words could do justice. It was nice to stretch his other set of legs.

Wally wasn't really hungry as he set off into the trees. He didn't feel like hunting. It wasn't as fun when he had to do it by himself. Instead he was content with strolling through the woods. He enjoyed exploring all of the smells and sounds. Wally walked parallel to one of the trails that ran through the state park. Usually he stayed deeper in the woods, but there were no signs of human activity in the area so he figured that the chances of exposing himself were very slim.

He was about to turn around to explore the other half of the park when he caught the scent of blood. His curiosity was replaced by the need to protect his territory. As far as he-and the rest of the pack for that matter-was concerned, the only predators in that area were of the wolf shifter variety. With no report of a deer kill in the area, the overpowering aroma of blood was quite concerning.

Wally carefully followed the scent to a small bunch of oak trees but for some reason, despite the massive amount of blood on the ground he was unable to locate the deer carcass other than a few meaty bits and tufts of fur. Though the mystery of the missing carcass was quickly solved as Wally followed the scent to the base of large oak tree. A menacing growl unlike anything he had even heard before pierced the quiet night. Instinct kicked in and Wally snarled and bore his teeth in response as he challenged the shadow in the tree. He had yet to get a visual on this unknown creature in the tree, but he was ready when he did.

Though nothing could have prepared him for what had happened next. He was snarling at the shadow in the tree, and the next thing he knew he was pinned to the ground by perhaps the biggest mountain lion he'd ever seen. At least he thought the creature was a mountain lion. Wally really couldn't be sure and didn't really trust himself to make an accurate assessment at the moment. The fur color matched that of a mountain lion, but that was where the similarities stopped. The cat on top of him was at least, if not bigger, than he was.

In hindsight, Wally probably shouldn't have challenged the beast in the tree to begin with or he should have at least howled for some sort of back up. It was a stupid, boneheaded move that he instantly regretted. If he ever got out of there alive, Barry was going to wring his neck. But now here he was, subject to the whim of massive cat on top of him. Wally tried to growl at the cat in some sort of half-assed effort to escape, he sure as hell did not have any more options for the time being. The wildcat did not seem to appreciate his efforts. A chill ran down his spine as he helplessly watched the cat raise one of its paws into the air. He had no doubt that within moments a single swipe of the cat's claws would be the end of him. Though instead of dispatching him like any sensible wild animal would have the creature seemed to pause mid-swipe as if some sort of epiphany had occurred to them. Now while Wally was not the kind of individual to look a gift horse in the mouth, he found this situation to be quite odd. And when he locked eyes with the bewildered wildcat he instantly knew why.

_That beast on top of him was no wild animal..._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry to leave it at a cliff hanger. I know that's a little crappy of me, but there's a lot that's going to go down in the next few chapters an it was the most logical stopping point. Thanks again for reading! I'm always anxious to hear what you guys think so let me know down below in the comments! :) Kudos are always appreciated. Thanks for stopping by. :)


	6. Into The Woods

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! Thanks for reading. Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out. I've been super busy with school and life. Hopefully this chapter will not disappoint, it's a long one. I would like to thank the people who comment on this fic on here and on ff.net (where I post as the almighty leprechaun) You guys don't know how much your comments mean to me. When I struggle with coming up with the next chapter, or writing, or even with life in general I go back and re-read your comments and they help me find the inspiration to keep at it. Your comments are invaluable to me as a writer and I cannot express enough gratitude towards you guys. Thank you for everything you do. Now without further ado, I hope y'all enjoy this chapter.

Wally found himself frozen under the beast’s unnaturally human gaze. The mountain lion on top of him seemed to be just as bewildered as he was. In this brief moment of mutual confusion Wally decided now would be the best time to make his move and head for the bushes. He managed to kick his legs up underneath the cat’s underside and made a valiant effort to throw the creature off of himself. The beast was momentarily caught off guard, but it was more than enough for Wally to slip out from underneath its paws. The mountain lion, or at least what he assumed to be a mountain lion despite the creature’s unusually large size, recovered quite quickly and made another swipe for his hindquarters as he tried to flee. Wally, continuing the pattern of poor life choices for that evening, decided to turn around and face the beast once more instead of getting as far away from the little clearing as possible as any sane individual with half a sense of self preservation would do. He flashed his teeth at the creature and crouched down on his haunches, ready to lash out and defend his pack’s territory from this outsider. 

The big cat, to it’s credit, kept its aggressive posture but did not lunge at Wally. Instead it just glared at him. He would say that the creature was perplexed, but there was definite aggressiveness within its unusual blue eyes. He could feel as the beast took in every inch of his figure illuminated under the light of the full moon. The low growl he emitted from this throat did not seem to bother it one bit. He was smart enough to know that this creature could rip him to pieces if it chose to do so. Though the fact that it chose not to in the first place was more perplexing to him. Wild animals like don’t show the restraint like the one in front of him did. It left a sick feeling in the pitt of his stomach. The last thing he wanted was a rogue shifter on his hands. Well, on the pack’s hands. He would not be alone in dealing with this. 

Wally wasn’t really sure what to do next. He wanted to make the first move, but was not sure which would be wiser. Attacking the creature might as well be him signing his death certificate. While he was faster than the creature, its quick reflexes and sharp claws did more than enough to even the playing field between the two of them. Running from the creature would leave him vulnerable as well. Wally figured he had more than enough puncture wounds in his ass for the night. He was more than certain he’d reached his quota for the foreseeable future in that department after his encounter with this beast. Left with his dilemma of whether to flee or fight the beast, Wally decided to wait it out and see what cat chose to do next, and hoped that his choice would not come to bite him in the ass. 

He did not have to wait long, the creature seemed to stare him down for an eternity before it finally decided to make its move. The cat let out one final hiss of displeasure before leaping off into the night. As he watched the beast disappear into the night he got a better look of the beast. One of its back legs was stained red with blood, though it did not seem to impede its mobility. He also noticed that there was what looked to be a scar from claw marks across its back. He had seen a similar injury before but could not place where he he had seen it, it left him with an unsettling sense of familiarity.

Wally decided that following the intruder would not be in his best interests that evening, despite what his instincts screamed at him. He had enough of his wits about him to know that there was more to this encounter. There was so much more to this creature he had come across. 

* * *

Artemis sprinted through the woods as fast as her paws would carry her. Her heart threatened to beat out of her chest as she flew through bushes. She could not believe what had happened. She didn’t expect to run into anything except a deer and maybe a few bunnies that evening, this wolf was not even on her radar of expectations. And if her hunch was correct, the creature she encountered was not even a wolf at all. Well, at least not all the time. While she had never come across a wolf shifter before, and knew very little about them, she was pretty sure that wolves did not have green eyes. She was in a panic. She needed to get out of this town as soon as possible, Artemis knew she could not afford another slip up if she wanted to stay hidden from her father. 

She made it to the gravel parking lot in record time, despite her poor shape. Her injured back leg screamed in protest as she bolted through the brush. It took every fiber of her being to concentrate enough to revert back into her human form. Her instincts told her to remain on all fours until the danger passed, but this kind of danger she faced would best be dealt with by reverting back into her human form. At least the wolf didn’t know what she looked like. Her scent was different in human form. She strongly suspected that he knew what she was, her species was not exactly native to Rhode Island. Artemis’ hands shook as she tried to pull her clothes back on to her body. She was aware that she was bleeding, especially her calf, but at the moment nothing was more important than getting as far away as possible. Though in the back of her mind, Artemis knew that the fact that the wounds had not healed during her shift was pretty much a conformation that the wolf she had encountered in the woods was of the supernatural variety.

Artemis wasted no time snatching her bike out of the bushes and hopping on it. Her hands shook with fear as she tried to steer the bike onto the road.  She peddled the bike as fast as her legs would allow. Her injured calf throbbed as blood ran down her leg and into her shoe. She tried to focus all of her attention on the journey back to her apartment, but she could not help but wonder if the wolf had followed her and the implications of this encounter. She knew the rules that wolves had. The wolf seemed too confident to be a lone wolf, which meant that as soon as they catch word of the encounter she would have to deal with the whole pack. Given her family history and species track record Artemis figured that no matter how noble her intentions were it would not be a good idea to stick around to see what this pack had in store for her.

Though as soon as she decided that it would be in her best interest to get the hell out of dodge, Artemis had calmed down enough to realize that she could not leave yet, despite how much she wanted to. She probably had $200 to her name at this point and her truck was still in the shop and would be until the end of the next week. She was stuck between a rock and a hard place. While she wanted to leave, despite these things, it would make the most sense for her to stay until then. At least until her truck was fixed and she got her next paycheck. Hopefully she would survive until then. At least that was what she told herself. She wanted to get out of Happy Harbor, it was what made the most sense. Yet, out of all the places she had lived these past few years she had spent on the run she had never felt more at home than she had on this little island. She felt herself wonder what could happen if she stayed, despite the wolves and the danger they posed to her continuing her existence. She didn’t want to admit it to herself, but she had become attached to this tiny seaside town and. It was something she never allowed herself to do before, however this time it felt right though at the same time she had a sinking feeling that it could also be her undoing. And while many things remained uncertain, there was one thing Artemis was sure of. She was not alone in these woods.

* * *

 

Wally wasn’t sure what to think as he loped back to the parking lot after he was confident that the mountain lion, whoever they were, had the chance to clear the area. He did not want another encounter with the beast that evening. He wasn’t sure what he was going to do or say to the pack, but he wanted to investigate further before he mentioned anything to anyone, despite Bruce's strict rules on the matter. His gut instinct told him that there was more to this encounter and he wanted to get to the bottom of his suspicions before he raised any red flags. Out of everything he had witnessed that evening the creature’s blue eyes haunted him the most. They were oddly familiar to him. That, combined with the strangely familiar scar that he was sure he had seen before, he was sure that he knew this person. Though he didn’t even dare to think her name, he didn’t want it to be her. Well at least part of him didn’t. It would mean that she would have to leave, or worse, and he was not ready for that. So he decided to make a rare move and reserve his judgment until he further investigated the situation. He had to be absolutely sure about his discovery.  And how he hoped he was wrong. Bruce was not going to be happy about a unknown and possibly rogue shifter in the pack’s territory, and Wally hated to think of what they would do if they decided to do something about the mountain lion.

He did not get much sleep after the encounter. After returning home and seeing that the scratches had not healed his mind was reeling. Wally knew those eyes, he had seen the same piercing glare that the cat had given him many times before in the bar. He didn’t know how to describe it, but the gaze was almost identical to the one Artemis used when she was truly pissed. That was not the only evidence he had to support his theory. The four long claw marks that ran across the mountain lion’s back looked oddly familiar to the one he had seen on her back. Wally had also made note that Artemis was pretty keen on hiding this scar, especially from her co-workers. The fact that Artemis might be a shifter could also explain her strange scent. She smelled like no human Wally had ever encountered before, and while Dick and Kal said her scent didn’t burn their noses like it seemed to burn Wally’s, they did note that it was unlike any human they had ever encountered. He also recalled her strange behavior on the night of the full moon. She seemed on edge, well at least a lot more than she usually was. As it all came together, Wally was left with an uneasy feeling.

He called in sick the next day. He was in no condition to be seen in public. Ollie wasn’t very happy about it, but at this point Wally couldn’t have cared less, he had much more important things to deal with at the moment. The scratches that the big cat left on his face and chest did not heal after he shifted back into his human form, further cementing his suspicions that the creature he had encountered was no wild animal. At least the ones on his face were not as deep as the ones that ran across his chest. Wally was lucky enough that Dick was still out of town. There was no way he could avoid telling him the truth of what happened, and Wally was not prepared for such a thing to come to light, despite the strict pack rules on the matter. He wasn’t stupid, there were too many coincidences that lined up, and things were not looking good for Happy Harbor’s newest resident. However he wasn’t going to say a thing until he was absolutely, one hundred percent sure that Artemis was the shifter he had encountered. Bruce and Ollie might put him through the wringer for it later, but something inside him told him that he needed to wait and see. And he wasn’t ready to lose Artemis quite yet, she had grown on him during her short time in the little beach town. She had become a friend, and before his strange encounter in the woods he had considered that there was a possibility that their friendship might become something else in the future. Though, now all bets were off, and Wally needed to get to the bottom of this before things got out of hand, or the higher ups in the pack got wind of this.

 

Wally was really not sure what to do in his situation. While the fact that Artemis might be a shifter scared him quite a bit, he was also very curious. It was rare that the pack encountered any other shifter, let alone another species. He had never seen anything like the beast he had encountered in the woods and he wanted to know more. 

* * *

The next morning his face seemed to look a lot better, the scratches were not quite gone and they itched like no other, but they were definitely a lot less obvious than they were the day before. By the time Wally’s evening shift came around he looked almost normal. He arrived at the bar thirty minutes before his shift so he could investigate some of his suspicions before getting to work. It was an unusually busy day, and while Artemis gave him a brief wave as he walked in, she had not had the time to stop by and say hello. Wally didn’t mind. She was scheduled to close with him that evening. He knew he would eventually get the chance to talk with her. It was an unusually warm day in Happy Harbor, probably the warmest it had been all month, and he immediately noticed that Artemis was the only member of the wait staff wearing jeans. It was definitely different from her normal pair of cut-off shorts. Not that he spent time staring at her legs or anything, it was just a change in routine, one that anyone would notice.  As he sat at the bar, waiting for Kal’s shift to end he also noticed that Artemis sported a slight limp. She was definitely favoring one leg over the other. It was another bit of evidence that he had against her, as he recalled giving the big cat a rather nasty bit in the leg during their encounter.

* * *

 

It was a normal day at the bar. Artemis was trying to return to her routine and put the night in the woods behind her for the time being. She did her best to keep her fears in the back of her mind. Now was not the time to work herself up into an anxious mess. She decided that she needed to focus on getting everything in order so that when her truck was finally fixed she could leave town. She was somewhat upset about leaving Happy Harbor, unlike many of the places she had lived before during her time on the run she felt welcome. She was even making some friends. Despite her desperate desire to avoid planting roots, the little seaside town was growing on her. 

Artemis had not noticed anything different after her encounter with the wolf as she went about her daily routine. Part of her hoped it was an isolated incident with a lone shifter, because if there was a pack in the area she was sure that she would have been contacted by now. She had not had many experiences with wolf shifters, but she knew that the packs could be very protective of their land, and while she fared well against that lone shifter she knew she was no match for a group of them. While she had not noticed anything out of the ordinary, Artemis did make sure she was extra diligent with looking over her shoulder. She had been on edge since she saw the other shifter and did not want to be caught off guard.

Her calf had been bothering her, especially at work. Artemis was not one to complain, but the deep puncture wounds in her calf were exhaustively painful after a long shift at the bar. The stinging sensation that radiated from the injury reminded of the wounds her sister used to give her when they would spar. The wolf’s bite seemed to be taking it’s own sweet time to heal itself. And the fact that her injuries were talking so long to heal meant that they came from a shifter. Artemis couldn’t help but wonder who the shifter could be. Their scent was not completely unfamiliar to her, but did possess some completely unfamiliar and overpowering notes that prevented her from placing it. She hoped that wolf shifters kept their human eye color the same way cat shifters did. The only thing she had to go off of was the shifter’s unnaturally green eyes, because the last time she checked wolves did not usually come with green eyes. The only person she knew in Happy Harbor that had green eyes was Wally. Though she did not even consider that he was the shifter. She just couldn’t see him being one. He was much to oblivious to be anything but human. 

She did her best to conceal her slight limp, despite the pain it had put her in during her shift. Artemis noticed that Ollie had an eye on her that afternoon, and she did not want to draw any more attention to herself. She knew that Oliver worried about her, none of her previous bosses had looked out for her like he did. She did appreciate it, but it also made her feel guilty because she knew when it came down to it she would be nothing more than a disappointment to him once her truck was fixed. 

While she was aware of her boss’ concerned gaze, Artemis was oblivious to Wally’s curious stare for most of the evening. He tried to be careful, but she finally caught his eye at the end of the evening. She made a face at him, but didn’t think much else of it, chalking it up to Wally just being weird. Artemis tried to push her concerns about her boss to the back of her mind and focused on finishing the rest of her shift.

* * *

 

Oliver knew he had a problem on his hands when the last shift of the night started. He had his suspicions that something had occurred when West called in sick a few days after the full moon. While Wally was chronically tardy, the kid was never sick. Ollie thought it was suspicious at the time, but didn’t think much about it until Artemis showed up the next day sporting a limp. He’d known what she was since the moment she stepped into his office for a job interview. Her scent was unmistakable. It didn’t take much to figure out her background, Bruce made a few calls and they figured out her parentage. The shifter community was not a big one, and with the right tools it wasn’t much of a challenge to figure out her history. He knew of her father and the crew he ran with, though it was very apparent to Ollie and Bruce that Artemis was not like her family. Ollie liked to say that he was a good judge of character, and he knew Artemis was a good kid. That’s why he offered her a job in the first place. Bruce, who was not as trusting, instructed him to keep an eye on her and Ollie saw no reason to consider her a threat. Well, that was until Wally called in sick, and Artemis showed up with a limp. Oliver decided to stick around that evening and watch the two. His gut told him that he needed to get to the bottom of this before things got out of hand, or Bruce got a whiff of trouble. 

* * *

After the kitchen closed most of the bar cleared out. It was a weeknight so only a few regulars stuck around until closing. Artemis usually rolled her silverware in the kitchen but this evening the barstools were pretty much empty so she decided to keep Wally company, seeing as the remaining stragglers didn’t want much to do with him as they carried on their conversation.

“Mind if I join you?” 

Artemis nearly startled Wally as she set down a bucket of silverware and napkins on the bar. He had been lost in his thoughts as he waited for the last few customers to leave. 

“No, not at all,” he smiled and hoped his cheeks didn’t look as red as they felt as the heat of the slight embarrassment crept up his neck. “How’s your evening going?”

She shrugged, “Same as usual. A little slow, but I don’t expect much on a Tuesday night. Are you feeling better? Kal said you were sick yesterday.”

“Yeah, it was nothing a little orange juice and a good night’s sleep couldn't take care of.” 

“That’s good to hear,” she mused as she skillfully rolled a napkin around silverware and stacked it in the quickly growing pile of completed rolls.

Wally nodded. He wasn’t sure what to say to her, he didn’t want to seem tense or strange to her, but he didn’t want to sit in an awkward silence either because he knew Artemis well enough to know she wouldn’t be the one to carry on the conversation all by herself. 

“What happened to you leg?” He couldn't think of anything else to say. And perhaps he could gauge her reaction. Besides being a little more jumpy than usual, Wally didn’t notice much of a change to her behavior. Either she was a better actress than he thought, or she did not have the same suspicions. Or, even better yet, he was wrong and she wasn’t that shifter in the woods. Wally hoped it was the latter, but knew better than to hold his breath. 

Artemis looked confused, “My leg?”

“You’ve been favoring the other one all night. Are you okay?” He tried not to look too intent, he didn’t want to spook her or sound like a creep. It was an honest observation.

To his surprise and slight confusion, she laughed. 

Artemis had spent the whole evening crafting a story to explain her limp after seeing Ollie’s concern. However, she did not expect Wally to ask her about it. “It’s nothing. I rolled my ankle the other night on my way home.” 

Wally knew she was lying. She’d worn jeans instead of her usual cutoff short that day. And while he was not one to question her pant choice or use a simple wardrobe choice as the only evidence to back his theory, given the circumstances he suspected she was trying to conceal something, especially with the heat wave they were having. 

“Oh no, I’m sorry to hear that. Did you bike to work today?” 

She smiled and waved him off, “It’s nothing more than a little sprain. I’ll be fine, Wallman.”

He wasn’t convinced. He’d seen how it had bothered her through the night. “I can give you a ride home after work. No need to aggravate it any more. You’ve been on your feet all day.”

Artemis’ nose wrinkled in annoyance. She shook her head, “I said I’m fine! I can get home on my own.”

Wally crossed his arms. _Why was she so stubborn all the time?_ “I didn’t say that you couldn’t. I was just offering, jeez.”

She scoffed, rolled her eyes and returned to her silverware bundles. He needed to stop worrying about her. She could take care of herself. 

Wally shook his head and went back to wiping down the bar. Maybe one day she would take the olive branch.  The last call had been fifteen minutes before, now all that was left was to wait for the three remaining patrons to disperse into the night.

* * *

 

Ollie watched Wally and Artemis talk at the bar from the kitchen. He did his best to stay out of sight, not wanting to raise any suspicion on their part. It was a half an hour before closing time and there were only a few stragglers remaining in the bar. Usually he would get on his employees for socializing on the clock, as there was always work to be done, but he let it pass this evening. At least Artemis was being somewhat productive rolling up silverware. He needed to figure out if there was anything going on between the two. He’d seen the way Wally had looked at her all that evening, and it was not the usual annoying lovesick stare. The kid was looking for something. Artemis, on the other hand, didn’t seem to have the same interest in West, though Oliver did notice she spent more time looking over her shoulder than she usually did. Despite her efforts to seem like nothing was out of the ordinary, he could tell that she was on high alert. From what he could gather their conversation consisted of nothing more than small talk and perhaps a little bickering, but that was the norm with those two. When the clock struck two Oliver slipped into his office after the kids separated to complete their closing duties. 

* * *

As soon as the clock struck two Artemis hopped off of her bar stool and went to go lock the door. She wasn’t in any particular rush to leave that evening like she had been a few nights prior, but she wanted to get off of her feet sooner rather than later. During the course of the night the dull stinging pain in her calf had transformed into an annoying throbbing sensation that she could no longer ignore. She wasted no time wiping down the tables and stacking the chairs.

* * *

 

Wally had already finished cleaning the bar area when they reached closing time. When he walked over to the back hallway to get the broom he was surprised to see that the light was on in Ollie’s office. He couldn’t remember the last time his boss stuck around for closing. Something wasn’t right. 

He didn’t bother knocking. Wally knew Ollie could hear him outside the door.

Oliver didn’t bother to look up from the paperwork he was pretending to work on, “Can I help you, West?”

“Why are you here this late?”

“Paperwork,” Ollie looked up from his folder of expense reports, “You going to tell me why you called in sick yesterday? We both know you didn’t have the flu.”

Wally shrugged. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. I was sick.”

Oliver raised one of his eyebrows. He knew something was going on, but didn’t anticipate that the kid would try to keep it from him. That was not Wally’s style. “Have it your way. It shouldn’t happen again, West.” 

“It won’t.” Wally wondered if Oliver knew more than he let on. Surely he would tell the pack if he thought that there was a stray shifter in their territory. He decided to change tactics. 

“How was the night of the full moon? Anything out of the ordinary?” Oliver already knew that Artemis left early from what the kitchen staff told him, but he wanted to see how Wally would answer.

The young man shrugged and did his best to act nonchalant.  “It was a pretty normal night? Why do you ask?”

“Bruce wanted to know. Are you sure you didn’t notice anything strange? It doesn’t matter how small it was.” 

Wally shook his head, “Nothing happened. Everyone was pretty normal. Artemis and I closed up and then we both went home.” It was a strange request, even for Bruce. He wondered if Ollie shared his suspicions that Artemis was more than human, but he did not want to tip him off until he confirmed his theory. He wanted to protect Artemis and give her the benefit of the doubt as long as his possibly could. 

Oliver studied the redhead for a moment. In the harsh fluorescent light of his office he could make out the faint outline of scratch marks across Wally’s face, but he said nothing about his observation. Something was fishy, Ollie could feel it in his gut. Either West was the most unobservant ignoramus out there, or he was hiding something. Though Ollie couldn't understand why he would keep something like this from the pack. 

“Is there anything else that I can help you with?” Wally stood in the doorway, unsure if Ollie was going to say anything else. As much as he wanted to get out from under the man’s gaze he didn’t want to raise any further suspicion. It seemed like an eternity before Oliver he spoke. 

“You can go.” Oliver bit his tongue. He wanted to observe a little more before he said something to the kid. He was missing something. 

“Alright. See you later, boss.” Wally wasn’t going to take any more chances. He got out of Ollie’s sight before he changed his mind. He really didn’t want to tip off the pack yet. 

Oliver knew that Bruce would have his neck if he knew that he was letting Wally off of the hook like this, but he wanted to see how this all played out. He wasn’t completely sure that Wally suspected Artemis, and didn’t want to tip him off. Oliver really hoped that this was not going to come back and bite him in the ass.

* * *

 

Artemis was hauling her bucket of silverware rolls to the kitchen when Wally practically bolted out of Oliver’s office. While he had caught her off guard she did her best to swerve out of his way, but her efforts were in vain as she collided with his chest and half of the rolls in the bucket crashed down to the floor. Wally managed to grab onto her shoulders and steady her before she lost her balance as well. He tried not to wince as she braced herself against his injured chest. 

“ _ Wally _ !” 

“Oh I’m so sorry. I didn’t see you there.” 

She rolled her eyes, “Clearly.” 

Artemis bent down and started to pick up the fallen rolls, they would have to be redone now that the napkins were dirty. All she wanted to do was go home, and now she would have to fix this before she left. Usually she would have just brushed off the napkins and called it good, but there was no way Ollie didn’t hear it and he would give her hell if she left the dirty rolls as they were. 

Wally joined her on the floor and started piling the discarded rolls in his arms, “Let me make it up to you. I’ll fix them.”

“No, it’s fine,” she tried to wave him off, “You need to finish your stuff.”

“It’s my fault, at least me help you.” Wally didn’t want her to have to stay any longer because of his mistake.

It was late. Artemis really didn’t want to argue with him so she relented, “Alright, go get some new napkins.” 

“Yes Ma’am,” He flashed her a grin and headed back to the supply closet for clean napkins. 

When he returned with an armful of fresh napkins he found Artemis sitting at one of the tables with a pile of silverware in front of her and the old napkins discarded on an empty chair. She didn’t look as mad as she did in the hallway, but Wally knew better than most that looks could be deceiving. 

He set the stack of clean napkins in between them and got to work. Artemis didn’t say anything to him as she grabbed a handful of silverware. For the first few minutes they worked in silence. It quickly became apparent that Artemis was much better at rolling silverware than Wally. By the time he had finished one roll she had finished three. 

“You’re pretty good at this,” he finally spoke. He knew she was tired and didn’t want to talk, but the silence was driving him nuts.

She didn’t look up from her work. “I’ve had a lot of practice.” 

He had assumed that she did with the way her fingers made quick work of the napkins. “Hey, look, I’m sorry for running into you. It won’t happen again.” He really did feel bad.

Her posture softened slightly, Artemis knew that he didn’t mean to run into her and decided to cut him a little slack. She smirked, “Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Wally. It’s okay. Things happen. We’re almost done.”

“I’ll try not to make a habit of it.” He smiled bashfully. At least he didn’t give her a black eye this time. He had been so concerned with his conversation with Ollie he didn’t see her until it was too late.

“Good to know.”

“Hey, do you want to do something after work?” He had been gathering the courage to ask her all day. 

Artemis looked surprised. “Wally it’s two thirty in the morning.”

“No, no, not now. Just sometime after work? Maybe on your day off?” Good thing most of the lights were off, because he was pretty sure he was as red as a tomato. 

“ _ Are you asking me on a date?” _

Date was a pretty strong word, and not one Wally wanted to touch with a ten foot pole. He tried not to seem so flustered. Artemis, on the other hand, was doing her best to hide her smirk.  “We could maybe grab a bite to eat, see where it goes?”

She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms, “Dinner isn’t my style.” She knew better than to agree to something like this. The last thing she needed was to plant any more roots in this town, though for some reason she couldn’t resist. 

“What about a hike?” Wally had gotten further than he thought he would and now he wasn’t going to give up so easily.

She considered it for a brief moment before she relaxed in her chair and uncrossed her arms. “Alright, I’ll bite. You have a plan?”

He nodded, “It’s nothing too challenging, but the view is worth the trip.”

She knew she was going to regret this, but at the moment she didn’t care. Artemis got up from her seat and grabbed the fresh pile of silverware rolls. “I’m free Thursday morning. Pick me up at 11:30.” 

“I’ll be there!”

Wally sat at the table for a moment. He was almost stunned. He almost couldn’t believe his ears. She said yes. He got up and followed her into the hallway where she was gathering her things from her cubby. 

“See you later, Baywatch.” Artemis didn’t want to stick around any longer in fear that she might change her mind. 

“Are you sure you don’t want a ride home?” He thought he should offer one more time. 

“Yep! Goodnight Wally!” Artemis made a point of maintaining an even stride as she walked toward the exit. She didn’t give him a chance to say anything else before she slammed the door behind her.

* * *

 

Her stomach was in knots as she pedaled home. Artemis found herself between a rock and a hard place. She shouldn't have said yes. It was against all logic.The last thing she needed was another reason to stay. Though, at the same time she figured that this could be the perfect thing to get her mind off of the wolf in the woods, at least for a little while. Despite the fact that he sometimes annoyed her to no end, Artemis knew that Wally was a good guy, but he was a human. He didn’t deserve to get caught up in the mess of her life. He wouldn’t survive it, if she wasn’t careful.  Despite her many apprehensions there was something about Wally that just put her at ease. She didn’t like it, it scared her. She didn't need to have these kind of feelings, especially given her current situation. Yet, at the same time, she hat reached the point where they were unavoidable. She couldn't ignore it anymore and she wasn't quite sure what to do. Though one thing was for certain, she knew if she allowed a place in her heart for Wally, it could be her undoing.   
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long for an update. Life just happens sometimes. Thanks for reading. I'm hoping to get the next chapter out before the end of the year, but we'll see how it goes. I'm not making any promises. I've started on the next chapter and I will have to say that it's probably my favorite I've written so far. If you have any questions or concerns or just want to say hi you can find me on Tumblr as TheColdestGinger. Thanks again for reading. And like I said earlier comments are always appreciated (unless you're rude, that just makes me sad) and Kudos are wonderful as well. Hopefully I'll see you guys soon! :)

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading. Comments and Kudos are always appreciated. I'm hoping to the get the refinished chapters out pretty quickly so stay tuned for more. :)


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